Philanthropic gift inspires research excellence

ELI AND Jeanette Reinhard have a long history of Stanford connections. Jeanette, a fifth generation Northern Californian, is a Stanford-trained economist and money manager. Eli is a successful real estate developer who came to Palo Alto from Tucson to attend Stanford and ultimately set down roots in San Jose. They met through finance and real estate but quickly realized they shared a deep appreciation for what Stanford has meant in their lives and in the local, national and global communities in which they operate.

Aligning with the Stanford University vision to “promote the welfare of people everywhere,” the Reinhards have supported different aspects of campus life for years through their time and philanthropic giving. Jeanette serves on Advisory Boards for the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research and the Institute for Research in the Social Sciences, and Eli has been highly involved in the Taube Center for Jewish Studies and the Green Library Judaica and Hebraica Collection.

“I learned from my late father that you should invest in your local community and that if you have the means, you should live a life of giving,” Eli said. “Jeanette and I have always tried to give with a posture of humility and respect, but also with meaningful intent.”

The Reinhards turned their attention toward supporting the School of Medicine, specifically the department of ophthalmology, after they met Michael Kapiloff, MD, PhD, who is now the Reinhard Family professor of ophthalmology.

Jeanette and Eli met Kapiloff and his family at their local synagogue shortly after the Kapiloff’s moved from Miami. As he discussed his research in both cardiology and ophthalmology—always a curiosity-provoking combination—Jeanette and Eli became more and more interested in both the scope of the research in the department of ophthalmology and the vision of its leader, Jeffrey Goldberg, MD, PhD, Blumenkranz Smead professor and chair of ophthalmology. Concurrently, Quan Dong Nguyen, MD, MSc, professor of ophthalmology and world-renowned expert in uveitis, provided much-needed care for a dear friend of the Reinhards. They ultimately also came to know Diana Do, MD, professor of ophthalmology, who performed a complicated surgery for the same friend.

“I am very grateful for the Halls’ friendship and their generous support in helping us address health disparities abroad and even here in the U.S.,” Tabin said. “We strive to provide greater access to eye care and to end unnecessary blindness and to date we’ve succeeded in bridging that gap in many global communities.” 

The Halls grew up in the same small town of Yakima, Washington. They attended the University of Washington as undergraduates. Joanne received her Licensed Practical Nurse degree from Western Nevada Community College and worked for many years in a small medical practice. Art served as a nuclear engineer in the Naval Reactors Branch of the United States Atomic Energy Commission, achieving the rank of lieutenant in the U.S. Navy. After leaving the Navy, he obtained an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and worked as a financial analyst at a San Francisco-based mutual fund before starting his own investment company in 1970. He managed this business until his retirement in 2008. 

Tabin’s global health work is not the only effort the Halls have supported at Stanford. They have a history of generous involvement with Stanford dating back to the 1960s. Art has served on the Board of Overseers of the Hoover Institution, and the courtyard of the new David and Joan Traitel Building is named in recognition of their generosity. They also support the Clinical Excellence Research Center (CERC) in the medical school, which aims to lower the cost of quality health care, as well as the Graduate School of Business.

“We are fortunate to be able to participate in the joy of giving back,” Art said. “Most recently we supported a research collaboration between CERC and the Department of Ophthalmology that seeks to identify the cost-saving cataract surgery practices developed by Drs. Tabin and Ruit globally and apply them to the U.S.” 

The Halls were motivated to support this project after learning that some underserved U.S. populations are unable to access cataract surgery, in part due to the higher cost imposed on care in the U.S.

“Joanne and I are proud to be a part of the innovative work that Stanford is doing both locally and abroad,” said Art.

B Y KATHRYN SILL

Kathryn Sill is the former web and communications specialist for the Byers Eye Institute in the Department of Ophthalmology, at Stanford University School of Medicine.