Compassionate Service Award

Grace Dammann, MD, is the 2012 Honoree

The Compassionate Service Award honors those who have made extraordinary contributions to the health of our community. We are privileged to honor Grace Dammann, MD on March 11, 2012.

“I believe medicine and spirituality are in my genes.” Shaped by the influence of both callings, Grace attended Divinity school and studied social work before receiving her medicine degree at the age of 39, and today represents the 6th generation of doctors in her family. In the early 1990’s, Grace helped open a step down-unit for San Francisco AIDS patients at Laguna Honda Hospital where she worked for over 20 years. She later helped found the Tom’s Steele Clinic in Mill Valley, which provides medical care in an emotionally supportive environment to more than half the individuals living with AIDS in Marin County. She was also an assistant Clinical Professor in the Department of Family Practice at UCSF, and worked at the University’s HIV Warmline.

In May 2008, while crossing the Golden Gate Bridge with her daughter, Grace was hit by a head-on car that crossed over the barrier. Her daughter was safe. Grace spent over a year in rehabilitation hospitals and was on a ventilator for months. Her recovery is the current object of a documentary film, and her recovery has acted to inspire many. All Grace cares about at this point is continuing to be of service; however that should play out in the future. Grace was honored as an Unsung Hero of Compassion in 2005 by His Holiness, The Dalai Lama.

Grace lives at Green Gulch Farm, as she has for about 20 years, with her partner of many years and her daughter, Sabrina.

Past Recipients of the Compassionate Service Award:

• Erica Goode, MD, MPH
• Jerry W. Mapp
• William H. Goodson, MD
• Robert M. Tomasello
• Bread & Roses
• George F. Lee, MD
• Mrs. Newton H. Neustadter, Jr
• Barbara K. Brown
• Agnes Bourne
• Denyse Parsons Browne
• Daphne Crocker-White
• Sandra Hobson
• Rosemary Klebahn
• Hiroo Nozawa
• Bambi Schwartz