Jackson Education Programs Receive $10,000 MDRT Foundation Grant

Date: March 15, 2005

Bar Harbor, Maine - Dermot T. Healey of Old Orchard Beach, Maine, has secured a $10,000 grant from the MDRT Foundation--the philanthropic arm of the Million Dollar Round Table--on behalf of The Jackson Laboratory.

Healey, a 31-year MDRT member and an active supporter of The Jackson Laboratory, endorsed the grant application to guide the charity through the application process. The MDRT Foundation grant will support educational courses, internships, and postdoctoral training programs.

"The Jackson Laboratory is a most deserving MDRT Foundation grant recipient with a strong commitment to research, resources and education," commented Healey. "The Laboratory's focus on science education through world-renowned courses and programs such as the Summer Student Program--which counts Nobel Prize winners among its graduates--is second to none."

This year, the MDRT Foundation will award nearly $900,000 in grants to more than 85 charities. Representing the MDRT Foundation, Healey will present this grant to The Jackson Laboratory when he visits in the coming months.

The premier association of financial professionals, MDRT is an international, independent association of more than 29,000, or less than one percent, of the world's best life insurance and financial services professionals from 77 nations and territories. Created in 1959 to provide MDRT members with a means to give back to their communities, the foundation has since donated $12.6 million in 61 countries around the world. Organizations that have benefited from MDRT Foundation grants include the Make-A-Wish Foundation, UNICEF, and Habitat for Humanity.

With more than 1,300 employees and an FY05 operating budget of $130.1 million, the nonprofit, 75-year-old Jackson Laboratory is one of Maine's largest employers. Its research staff of more than 450 investigates the genetic basis of cancers, heart disease, osteoporosis, Alzheimer's disease, glaucoma, diabetes, and many other human diseases and disorders. The Laboratory is also home of the Mouse Genome Database and many other publicly available information resources, and is also an international hub for scientific courses, conferences, training and education-including programs for Maine high school, college, and graduate students.

Contact(s):

Joyce Peterson, 207-288-6058, joyce@jax.org

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Media Relations, Communications Office
The Jackson Laboratory
600 Main Street
Bar Harbor, Maine 04609-1500
Phone: 207-288-6051
Fax: 207-288-6076
Email: news@jax.org