The Face of Alabama Healthcare
Get to know the CEOs guiding Birmingham through today’s ever-changing medical system.
BY SARAH BRUEGGEMANN | PHOTO BY ROB CULPEPPER

John D. O’Neil
CEO, St. Vincent’s Health System

Getting there: “Growing up, I was always intrigued by physicians. When I had the opportunity to start working in a hospital, I loved the idea of being able to help others during their most difficult times in life. I started in hospital management back in 1981 in an entry-level management position. I worked under nursing services and got a great education on how hospitals work from the ground up.  From there it led to management positions, providing leadership for the surgical operations, emergency medical services and other areas within the hospital. I then completed a master’s degree in Health Services Administration, which helped open several doors to senior-level leadership positions. I joined the Daughters of Charity Health System in 1993, which eventually led to my calling to become part of the Birmingham community.”
Goals: “Our future goals include building a state-of-the-art replacement hospital for St. Vincent’s St. Clair. In addition, new primary care and specialty physicians are being recruited to provide necessary specialty services throughout our health system. We have 4,700 associates affiliated with St. Vincent’s, as well as close to 1,000 physicians. My hope is that all these individuals will perpetuate the vision of the Daughters of Charity that started our hospital in 1898.” 
Recent changes: “We have the second busiest prostate robotic program in the country and have recently seen significant advances in open heart surgery as well as the treatment of peripheral vascular disease with our robotic and laser programs at St. Vincent’s Birmingham and St. Vincent’s East. We also have some of the finest orthopedic surgeons in the country working at the Andrews Sports Medicine and Orthopedic Center.” 
Toughest part: “Healthcare is going through very difficult challenges. Our mission statement calls for us to be ‘rooted in the loving ministry of Jesus Christ’ and to serve all individuals with special attention to the poor and vulnerable. This is constantly being challenged by reimbursement issues brought on by lack of funding from Medicare and Medicaid.”
What’s rewarding: It’s the stories that come almost every day about healing that has taken place or how we put a smile on someone’s face. These are the stories that energize me on a daily basis.
 

More Stellar Stationery from Markham Bailey
BY ALICIA K. CLAVELL | PHOTO BY JEAN ALLSOPP

Keep all your invitations and wedding information organized and within arms reach in an elegant, personalized folder or box in the Marguerite line of "fine tools for organizing" from Markham Bailey LLC. Founder Anne Bailey, is a Birmingham entrepreneur, book artist and poet who says she has been dubbed "the Kate Spade of office products." The Marguerite line is acid-free, water resistant and makes beautiful use of the swirl pattern of DuPont Tyvek, which Anne says mimics Japanese paper in style, but is ruggedly durable.
     Anne grew up in her father's printing business, Southern Label Company. Anne remembers looking at her father's ink-stained fingers when she was a girl. "And that was after he scrubbed them!" she says. Anne helped grow his business into a flourishing national industry presence in flexo printing and converting. Her mother, a librarian at The Altamont School, shared her love of books, paper and words with Anne. After graduating from Barnard College at Columbia University in New York, Anne attended the M.F.A program in Book Arts at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. 
      Throughout her career in business, Anne has imagined new possibilities in niche markets, and in 2009, she saw an opportunity to meld the creative aspects of her interests and personality, through elegant design and proven manufacturing techniques. So she founded Markham Bailey LLC, housed in the Innovation Depot in Birmingham's Entrepreneurial District. Markham Bailey is set to launch two lines of products in May 2010 (Birmingham brides who want to order products prior to the May launch, may contact Anne or Ruby Begonia). Marguerite ™ is a line of fine organizational office product tools for women, being offered in several elegant colors and styles. On the second Markham Bailey product line, Percival™, Anne has teamed up with The G Brand's, Chad Martin (thegbrand.com). "Chad has designed a number of ornamental patterns, working with metal panels all the way to wall stencils. There is a strong synergy between our two companies," says Anne.

See more Markham Bailey products at markhambailey.com or call 205.907.7347 for more information.

Homeward Bound
Heart Gallery Alabama gives a face to foster children.
BY ANGIE BROWN | PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF HEART GALLERY ALABAMA

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. But sometimes it’s worth something far more valuable. At Heart Gallery Alabama, an organization that promotes adoption from Alabama’s foster system, each picture displayed offers the chance at a loving family and permanent home for a child in need.
     Right now, the state’s foster system consists of approximately 7,000 children, and about 700 of those children have had their parental rights terminated, meaning they are available for adoption. Of this number, about 300 do not currently have a permanent family identified for them, placing them in a foster or group home where they live while waiting to be adopted.
     That’s where Heart Gallery Alabama comes in. The organization works with professional photographers, who volunteer their time and services to take compelling portraits of these waiting children. Heart Gallery then pairs the photos with a short bio on each child and exhibits them at venues such as the Birmingham Museum of Art, Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, Levite Jewish Community Center, and other museums and churches throughout the state. “One of our goals is to enable you to see these kids in your home and picture them as your own children,” explains Executive Director Michelle Bearman-Wolnek, who is an adoptive parent and social worker. “We make them real, unique and individual—not just a name and a statistic.”
     The program has been a true success, resulting in the adoption of close to 150 children since the organization began in 2005. “Sometimes I don’t even recognize the children when the families send me their new photographs,” Michelle says. “You can’t even imagine this is the same child. They change so much. You don’t even notice how lost they looked in our pictures until you see how happy and comfortable they are with their new family.”
     Michelle decided to start Heart Gallery in January 2005 after reading an article in Parade about Diane Granito, a social worker in New Mexico who collaborated with photographer Cathy Maier Callanan to develop the idea of taking portraits of children in need of an adoptive home. Their idea had led to the creation of Heart Gallery of America, Inc. Inspired, Michelle contacted the organization and discovered that other advocates across Alabama had also expressed interest. Together, they formed the initial Board of Directors for Heart Gallery Alabama, and they reached out to the State Office of Permanency (then the State Office of Adoption). In November 2005, the organization displayed its first exhibit of 24 portraits at the Birmingham Museum of Art.
     Originally volunteer-run, Heart Gallery Alabama has grown to support a professional staff with hopes to expand even more this year. Thanks to a generous grant, the organization’s Web site now includes 50 videos so potential parents who connect with a particular photo can log on and watch that child’s interview. Next, Michelle wants to find a sponsor to provide bio cards at the exhibits so interested people can take the children’s information home with them. “These children—by no fault of their own—are in the predicament that they are in,” Michelle says. “We have a saying that there are no unwanted children, only unfound families, and that’s really the truth. Once you get to know any of these children, you realize that most of them just need a stable, loving home.”
     On February 11, Heart Gallery Alabama will host its 2nd Annual Fotos, Frames and Fun event at Ted’s Garage. With music, food, silent and live auctions, and, of course, a chance to view the children’s portraits, it’s a party you won’t want to miss. The exhibit will travel to Talladega during February and Huntsville in March. To find out more and listen to the kids tell their own stories, visit heartgalleryalabama.com. To learn more about how it all began, visit heartgalleryofamerica.org.




 

On the FLIPside
A new restaurant in Birmingham defines “fine dining between two buns.”
BY SARAH BRUEGGEMANN | PHOTOGRAPHY BY ROB CULPEPPER

A recent addition to the Summit’s restaurant options, FLIP Burger Boutique is a far cry from McDonald’s fare. “The concept is so approachable, yet even burgers can be elevated to gourmet status,” says owner and creative director Richard Blais. With high-end ingredients and an emphasis on organic, farm-fresh produce, FLIP proves that the simplest food often provides the most innovative inspiration.
     A popular contestant on Bravo’s Top Chef Season 4, Richard is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America. His resume includes a stint as chef de partie at the famed Restaurant Daniel in New York and at the celebrated French Laundry in California’s Napa Valley. After moving to Atlanta in 2001, he opened his eponymous restaurant, Blais, to critical acclaim. Now, Richard has partnered with Ron Stewart and Barry Mills to build a better burger. FLIP’s
success started in Atlanta, where it merited a four-star rating and a cultish following. The expansion to Birmingham is the first in an effort to take FLIP nationally.
     Fifteen to 20 different burgers typically appear on the menu, which rotates out a collection of around 30 different recipes. The beef, a house-ground mix of short ribs, hangar steak and brisket, makes these burgers much juicier than ones made with leaner meat. The best-selling burger is the FLIP, with traditional toppings such as onion, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles and the secret FLIP sauce. But diners who venture into gourmet territory are rewarded with such inventive dishes as the Korean b-b-que and the steak tartare burgers. “There’s logic and culinary sense behind everything we do,” says Richard. “We don’t just throw a dart at a bunch of ingredients. There is a lot of thought put into every item on the menu.”
     For example, the wild turkey burger is paired with Benton’s bacon, Gouda, cranberry scallion relish and a smear of smoked mayonnaise. Micro greens, sour apples and Brussels slaw are artfully stacked upon a jumbo-lump crab cake. Other inspired creations include the Philly, steak tartare, ossobuco, faux-lafel and chorizo burgers. For the Southern burger, Richard says, “I thought, ‘Why can’t you make the bun a biscuit and batter the meat?’ ” Pimento cheese, b&b pickles and sausage gravy cover the chicken-fried beef patty.
     For non-beef eaters, there are plenty of vegan and vegetarian burger options plus caesar, thai-bouleh, five bean, and other salads. Condiments that arouse curiosity such as “cajunaise,” raisin ketchup, and blue cheese foam are all made in house. Also made at the restaurant are the fluffy, buttery brioche buns. Seasoned hand-cut French fries, vodka-battered onion rings and sweet potato fries are essential accompaniments to the meal. And no visit is complete without trying Richard’s molecular gastronomy.
     “FLIP is the world’s only liquid nitrogen milkshake bar,” says Richard. “But we don’t just use it for theater. Nitrogen freezes things really quickly so ice crystals don’t develop. You get a semi-glacial level on top with creamy gelato in the middle of the shake.” Flavors of the decadent treats include s’mores, pistachio with white truffle, and Krispy Kreme, which perfectly captures the essence of the famous glazed donut. The most surprising—and sinfully delicious—concoction features foie gras and tastes like vanilla laced with amaretto. Mist trailing from the glass evaporates as the milkshake is brought to the table.
     That sense of drama is carried throughout the restaurant’s décor. A massive graffiti mural with white swirls printed over bold pop culture imagery looms high overhead. Behind the bar, where guests can watch the fast-paced action of the open kitchen, fanciful Baroque frames hold two flat screen TVs and a middle mirror. A center row of clean-lined tabletops is punctuated by red napkins and underlined by a long red carpet. The plush white leather booths—with matching tables and seating flipped upside down from the ceiling to play on the restaurant’s name—would look at home in A Clockwork Orange’s Milk Bar.
     “Some people have said that the concept won’t work here,” Richard remarked prior to the restaurant’s opening. “But I think Birmingham will respond.” So far, the Magic City has responded to FLIP with a resounding yes. On a Monday at 11:15 a.m., there’s already a line of people quickly filtering into booths, communal dining tables, and the bar. The atmosphere is lively and enthusiastic. “It’s about the experience,” says Richard. “I want customers to walk away saying, ‘That was fun!’ ” 

Try one of Richard’s tasty gourmet creations at home with this recipe for FLIP Burger Boutique’s Turkey Burger

Ingredients:
5 oz. free range organic turkey (ground)
¼ tsp. kosher salt
¼ tsp. kosher pepper
1 tbsp. POM juice
2 tbsp. ketchup
1 avocado
¼ tsp. salt
½ fresh lime
bean sprouts
1 tsp. olive oil
1 tsp. red wine vinegar
1 tomato slice (optional)

Turn stove on high heat. Press the 5-oz. patty into a 3.5-inch ring mold. Season both sides lightly with kosher salt and pepper. Sear the outside hard, then leave on skillet and cook at medium heat until patty reaches 165º.
     While patty is cooking, prepare pomegranate ketchup by adding POM juice to a separate skillet and simmering over low heat until reduced to syrup. Remove 1 tbsp. POM syrup and mix with 2 tbsp. ketchup. Spread across bottom of bun.
     To prepare avocado puree, combine one avocado (seed removed and taken from peel), ¼ tsp. salt, and the juice from ½ fresh lime in a bowl. Using your hands, crush to a chunky consistency. Set bowl to
the side.
In a separate bowl, toss bean sprouts with 1 tsp. of olive oil and 1 tsp. red wine vinegar. This is to be done right before use. At this point your patty should be cooked through.
     To build the perfect burger follow this sequence: bottom of bun, pomegranate ketchup, turkey patty, slice of tomato (optional), avocado puree, bean sprouts, top of bun.


For more information on FLIP, visit flipburgerboutique.com. To learn more about Richard, visit trailblais.com.