The AiRS (Alliance in Reconstructive Surgery) Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit founded by Dr. Janet Denlinger and Morgan Hare, two women whose success in business motivated them to find a way to give back to our community. To that end, they asked Dr. Rod Rohrich, the founding Chairman of the Department of Plastic Surgery at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, to suggest ways he felt they could make a difference. He told them about the issues related to breast reconstruction surgery after mastectomy, and that led to the three of them establishing the AiRS Foundation.
The AiRS Foundation works in partnership with physicians in the United States, providing the resources necessary to make this surgery an option for women who would not otherwise have access to breast reconstruction. AiRS Foundation partners with health care providers, health care centers and other groups to promote this service and teach other professionals and educators to carry on this work while supporting advances in health care research. AiRS Foundation advocates for, educates, and supports breast cancer survivors by raising awareness, building confidence, and restoring dignity through funding and the support of our professional network across the country.
About Morgan Hare:
Morgan Hare has more than 30 years of experience in the cosmetics and skin care industries, and she has held executive marketing and product development positions at national, blue-chip consumer product and retail companies.
A visionary and results-oriented top sales and marketing executive and corporate officer with profit and loss responsibility as well as international and domestic expertise. Reinvigorating organizations by designing global strategies to secure the growth opportunities, streamline processes, and penetrate new markets. She consolidates teams to produce cross-functional dialogues and leverage existing resources. Morgan maintains an updated knowledge base of consumer trends and is a dedicated and personable leader who aligns staff with corporate mission to achieve core objectives.
She is the Co-Founder and President of Dallas-based Hylaco LLC, parent company of eraclea®, In March 2011, Hylaco launched eraclea, the company’s revolutionary new line of skin care products featuring the patented Hylafusion®. This proprietary ingredient is scientifically designed to maintain the hydration that helps retain the youthful appearance of the skin.
About Dr. Janet Denlinger:
Dr. Janet L. Denlinger is President of the Matrix Biology Institute and Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Hylaco, LLC. The Matrix Biology Institute (MBI) is a non-profit research and development organization dedicated to hyaluronan (HA, hyaluronic acid) research and education, and has also developed a special form of HA for use in skin care.
Her research at the Department of Connective Tissue Research at the Boston Biomedical Research Institute in Boston, MA, was the basis for, viscosupplementation, for the treatment of the symptoms of osteoarthritis.
While working at the Connective Tissue Laboratory of the University of Paris VIII, she received a Ph. D. degree for her work on the metabolism of hyaluronan in articular and ocular tissues. Her publications include articles in the areas of ophthalmology, orthopedics, biochemistry and biotechnology.
She was cofounder of Biomatrix, Inc., a biotechnology research, development and manufacturing company in NJ.
About Dr. Rod J. Rohrich:
Dr. Rod J. Rohrich is an internationally known, highly respected and skilled plastic surgeon from Dallas, Texas. He is board certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery and has led most of the key professional organizations in plastic surgery including serving as President of ASPS.
Dr Rohrich was the founding chair/distinguished teaching professor of the Department of Plastic Surgery at the University of Texas-Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. He chaired the Residency Review Committee for Plastic Surgery which oversees all the accredited plastic surgery training programs in the USA. He served as a Director and Chair of the Oral Exam of the American Board of Plastic Surgery, the group that awards board certification to plastic surgeons. He has received numerous honors and awards including the Plastic Surgery Foundation Distinguished Service Award three times.
He has authored hundreds of innovative academic publications in the field. He serves as Editor-in-Chief of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and PRS Global Open. Dr. Rohrich has performed philanthropic work as a Dallas civic leader and established the Rod J. Rohrich, M.D. Foundation to support medical students in his native North Dakota. He also established the University of Michigan Rod J. Rohrich, MD Family Visiting Professor Lectureship to advance plastic surgery education.
