Benefactors Honor 2 Staff Members With New Prize

Two members of the medical staff of Einstein Medical Center Montgomery have been honored for their exceptional work by a family whose philanthropic commitment to Einstein has endured through five generations.

Adrienne Bellino-Ailinger and AnnaMarie Castaneda each received $20,000 as the inaugural winners of the Berton and Sallie Korman Family Prize, which was established to recognize “Excellence and Innovation in the Delivery of Healthcare” at Einstein Montgomery.

Bellino-Ailinger, a nurse at the Einstein Endoscopy Center in Blue Bell, said her reaction was “disbelief.”

“It was quite a shocker,” she says. “Winning alone – and then the generosity of the prize – was truly overwhelming.”

Castaneda, clinical site supervisor in medical oncology at Einstein Montgomery, says she was “pretty much in shock the rest of the day. I was shaking and crying for a while.”

Bellino-Ailinger and Castaneda were among 15 nominees cited as exemplars of the “values that are shared by Einstein and the Berton and Sallie Korman family.”

Sallie Korman joined the ceremony by Zoom from Jupiter, Fla., where she now lives; Berton Korman passed away in 2020. Their son, John Korman, a member of Einstein Healthcare Network’s Board of Trustees, addressed the employees who gathered in the lobby of Einstein Montgomery for the first presentation of the award. Also joining in the inaugural presentation were John’s sister, Carolyn Korman Jacobs, and brother, Jim.

Einstein Montgomery Chief Operating Officer Beth Duffy gave lavish thanks to the Kormans, going back to patriarch Hyman Korman’s involvement with Einstein’s founding as the Jewish Hospital, more than 150 years ago, and  to the present day.

“Bert and Sallie were fully vested in the Einstein mission and recognized it is our healthcare professionals who are the living embodiment of our mission and they are the ones who make it come to life,” Duffy said.

The prize, which is endowed in perpetuity by a $1 million gift, will be awarded once a year to two recipients who “best represent the qualities found in Einstein Montgomery’s five pillars: quality, service, academics, finance, and people,” Duffy said.

Bellino-Ailinger was nominated by Kathy Lockhart, Clinical Director of Nursing at Einstein Endoscopy Center Blue Bell, who said: “Adrienne strives to deliver whole person, patient-centered care and serves as a mentor to her peers. She is the primary preceptor for all new nurses at the Endoscopy Center. She ensures that the new staff is oriented to policies and procedures and understands the why behind them.”

Bellino-Ailinger knows exactly how she’ll spend the money: toward tuition to complete her master’s degree to become a nurse practitioner. “With three children, I didn’t know how I was going to pay tuition. It was absolutely in question whether I could finish.”

The award has made it possible. “It truly has been life-changing,” she says.

Castaneda was nominated by Marc Schaller, Associate Vice President of Healthcare Services, who said: “AnnaMarie clearly impacts patients and families (and colleagues) on so many levels – whether it’s making them comfortable for a patient visit, scheduling future appointments and addressing any questions, or answering the questions that may be associated with an insurance bill, AnnaMarie does it all with such compassion and authenticity.”

Castaneda credits Schaller with mentoring her and encouraging her to advance in her career. She knows exactly how she’ll spend the cash award, too.

“I want to get my first house for me and my daughter.” she says. “She motivates me to work hard and keep pushing. This winning is a representation of her, and to teach her to work hard and stay true to herself, and, last but not least, to work hard for something that you love.”

• Berton and Sallie Korman Family Prize