Support Dogs Inc., a local nonprofit that helps people achieve mobility and independence through assistance dogs, has received a generous $1 million
grant from the Berges Family Foundation. The foundation, also local, invests in strengthening all aspects of the St. Louis community.

Insider-2016+Honorees+-SmallKudos to this year’s Saint Louis Visionary Awards honorees: Stacy West, DeAndrea Nichols, Phoebe Dent Weil, Priscilla Block, Sabina England and Denise Thimes. The awards recognize women who have made major contributions to the arts. They will be celebrated at an event April 25 with entertainment by former Alvin Ailey Company lead dancer Alicia Graf Mack and SLSO principal trumpet Karin Bliznik.

Insider-imageCongrats to Det. Thomas Exline, at left, who was named by the Creve Coeur Olivette Chamber of Commerce as 2015 Police Officer of the Year. He joined the department in 2005 and has been part of the Creve Coeur Police Investigations Bureau since 2013. Exline was recognized for his success in resolving cases and his compassion toward victims and their families.

Insider-Norma-with-BleichWe bid a fond farewell to local philanthropist Norma Stern, who passed away March 15 at the age of 89. A Woman of Achievement, Stern served as board president of the Barnes Hospital Auxiliary, was the first chairperson of Doorways Red (fundraiser to provide housing for HIV patients), on the advisory board of Siteman Cancer Center and on the Barnes Jewish Hospital Foundation Board. Pictured: Norma Stern with Dr. Michael Bleich
Photo courtesy of Goldfarb School of Nursing

Insider-SUSMAN-pic-2Former St. Louisans Louis and Marjorie Susman were back in town recently to share their experiences. At a fireside chat in Washington University’s Whittemore House, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom Louis Susman (J.D. ’62) discussed world affairs, and in a special tea event, Marjorie Susman discussed her book, Letters from London: Tales of an Ambassador’s Wife. Pictured: Louis Susman, left, with former classmate Thomas Lowther