The Insider: 7.25.18

A group of area high school grads took home the government’s highest honor for young adults, the Gold Medal Congressional Award. Claudia Barney and Sophia Barney of Maplewood, Katheryn Elliott and Josephine Moran of St. Louis, Ashley Chiles of Kirkwood, and Kaelin Dooley of Webster Groves are all members or alumnae of St. Louis Irish Arts, which operates a school of Irish music and dance. The award celebrates achievement in public service, personal development, physical fitness and exploration.

The Saint Louis Art Museum has sewn up a major acquisition of 16th-19th century American Indian textiles, including rugs, blankets and garments. Several of the items donated by philanthropists Paul and Elissa Cahn will be featured in ‘Southwest Weavings: 800 Years of Artistic Exchange,’ an exhibit that opens later this year. The Cahns gifted a number of pieces to the Minneapolis Institute of Art as well. The two began their collection in the 1980s to help raise awareness about native textiles.

Welcome to the StL!
Dr. Hsieng Su recently joined SSM Health as vice president for medical affairs and chief medical officer. She oversees patient safety, quality, and regulatory and patient experience matters for the system’s eight local hospitals. Su comes to the post from Milwaukee, where she served as chief medical officer for Aurora St. Luke’s Medical Center. She earned her medical degree at Georgetown University and is an internist by training.

Area native Dr. John Daniels caught the writing bug late one night when he couldn’t sleep, and now he has published a second book, Second Chances. The novel is about a young doctor who faces off with a biopharmaceutical company that has stolen his research data. Daniels says he writes for enjoyment and to support good causes; he’s donating all proceeds from the book to the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBT civil rights group. Available at amazon.com.

the main events

Got a hankering for a hamburger? St. Louis Burger Week is close at hand. Presented by the Missouri Beef Council, 40 of the area’s juiciest burger spots like Atomic Cowboy, Hi-Pointe Drive-In and more will serve up $6 specialty burgers July 30 through Aug. 5. And you can enter for a chance to win a grill party!

Take note! The Gateway Arch Park Foundation and National Blues Museum will present Blues at the Arch, a free Friday concert series held downtown Aug. 3 through 24. Local and national blues artists will be featured, with everyone’s favorite monument as a
dramatic backdrop.

An exhibit of works by local artist Patricia Brokaw is on view through Sept. 1 at Norton’s Fine Art and Framing in Richmond Heights. Brokaw works exclusively in reduction block printing, which involves drawing an image backwards on a block, then carving the surface so it can be printed with colored inks.