On November 10th, 2021, we proudly hosted our first annual ReSurge Honors event at Sharon Heights Golf and Country Club in Menlo Park. This breakfast fundraiser explored the empowerment model and honored our Pioneering Women in Reconstructive Surgery (PWRS) Program, an initiative we started in partnership with SkinCeuticals to advance the next generation of women reconstructive surgeons through surgical training, leadership development, and mentorship.
Thank you to all who attended this inspiring event — and for those of you who weren’t there, we’ve got you covered! Scroll on to watch the full program and view photos from the event.
Julie Hanna in Conversation with John Markoff: The Sustaining Impact of the Empowerment Model
The highlight of the morning was a conversation hosted by our esteemed guests, Pulitzer prize-winning journalist John Markoff and technologist, entrepreneur and investor, Julie Hanna. The pair led an engaging conversation that explored the empowerment model in Silicon Valley as well as in the international development sector. They spoke about technology’s role in making this model replicable and sustainable, as well as pioneering and entrepreneurial (what we are doing at ReSurge through programs like PWRS). The talk also touched on the positive advancement of women, and analyzed technology as an instrument for scale and reach while simultaneously cautioning that this must be combined with access.
“I dreamt of a world that understands that pity is the near enemy of compassion. A world that understands that talent is universal but opportunity isn’t. And most of all I dreamt of a world that understands that a cornerstone of justice is fair access.
So often we look at people through the lens of their broken circumstances and we think that they’re broken too. This can be so disempowering and it’s why I draw great inspiration from ReSurge’s work.”
– Julie Hanna, technologist, entrepreneur and investor
Watch the Full ReSurge Honors Program
Another highlight of the event was a surprise visit from two of our PWRS trainees, Dr. Tinga Nyoni and Dr. Matolase Mtonga. Dr. Nyoni is the third reconstructive surgeon in Zimbabwe, a country of 15 million people, and Dr. Mntonga is on track to become the second reconstructive surgeon in all of Zambia and the first woman reconstructive surgeon in a country of 18. million.
Watch Dr. Nyoni and Dr. Mtonga in action in this short video about the PWRS program that premiered at the event.
Event Photos: ReSurge Honors PWRS
Thank you, Sponsors!
