Friday, August 15, 2025
The Liberty University College of Osteopathic Medicine (LUCOM) honored 17 donor families at the annual Donor Memorial Ceremony hosted by the Class of 2028 on Friday afternoon inside the Center for Music and Worship Arts on the campus of Liberty University.
The ceremony pays homage to those individuals who have donated their bodies to insure the excellence of medical education and the advancement of medical science at LUCOM. The memorial ceremony also serves to publicly thank the families and friends of donors.
“I want to express my sincere gratitude to each of the donors and their families. The donor’s selfless gift enabled us to learn in an extremely impactful way. While treating our future patients, we will always be able to think back to what we were taught by our donors.” second-year student Emily Valencia said in the opening statement.
She was one of eight LUCOM students to participate in the ceremony and the entire 2027 and 2028 classes were also in attendance. Three students performed special music in honor of the donors, while three others gave reflections regarding their donors. Class of 2028 SGA President David Luke Dreyfuss addressed the audience with a welcome and prayer, while SGA Vice President Kevin Lee ended the ceremony with a benediction.
“To the family and friends here today, there is only so much classroom learning can do,” second-year student P’Anté Rolle said. “And it was the generosity of your loved ones that allowed us to take our education a step further by bringing what we learned in presentations and textbooks to life. Their sacrifice speaks not only to the legacy they’ve left, but the lives they lived and their heart for loving others and continual growth.” She continued.
“As a result, we showed the same respect and dignity that we would have shown them in life because this was still an individual with a life lived and loved ones still here. We are forever grateful for entrusting themselves to us and that they helped us on our journey to one day becoming orthopedic surgeons, ophthalmologists, cardiologists, dermatologists, family doctors, as well as many other types of physicians.” P’Anté concluded.
Elijah Chung addressed the families and spoke how the donors were more than silent teachers of anatomy. “They showed us the dignity and worth of every life we will care for.” Elijah mentioned. “Each of us carries their stories now—their gift is written into our hands, our hearts, and the way we will practice medicine for the rest of our lives. To the families here today: the legacy of your loved ones lives on. We will carry their memory into every exam room, hospital floor, and community we serve. Their gift has shaped who we are becoming as doctors and as people. That gift is beyond measure, and we are forever grateful.”
These students weren’t the only ones that spoke at the Donor Memorial Ceremony. The Dean of LUCOM, Joseph R. Johnson, DO, FACOOG (Dist), spoke and Scott Severance, PhD, also gave a message from the faculty.
Keith Lustig, MD, an Associate Professor of Anatomical Sciences at LUCOM, spoke on the role of the donors in medical education. “We call donors our first patients,” he said. “Through dissection, students not only master anatomy by also develop compassion, precision, and respect—qualities essential to excellent patient care. Unlike textbooks or videos, dissection offers a three-dimensional understanding of the body’s intricate design. We encourage students to use anatomical atlases like roadmaps, navigating the human form with humility and care.”
The ceremony concluded with various donor families touring the facilities at LUCOM and interacting with various student doctors.
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