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Charles L. Branch BrainHealth Award

Created in 2010 and offered jointly by Center for BrainHealth and the Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute at UC Berkeley, the Branch Award honors neuroscientists who have made tremendous breakthroughs in brain discoveries and are luminaries advancing brain health research.

Unparalleled

Breakthroughs

in Brain Research

Each year, one pioneering neuroscientist receives the Charles L. Branch BrainHealth® Award in recognition of a lifetime of innovative brain research.
Created in 2010 to honor Dr. Charles L. Branch for a lifetime of achievement as a distinguished neurosurgeon, prolific scholar and generous humanitarian, BrainHealth's highest science honor is conferred upon researchers who have made overwhelming contributions to brain research.

Charles L. Branch, MD (1926-2013)

Dr. Charles L. Branch was a leading brain health scholar, neurosurgeon and humanitarian.
After graduating from Vanderbilt University Medical School, Dr. Branch completed an internship at the University of Chicago and a neurosurgical residency at the Montreal Neurological Institute at McGill University, under the guidance of Dr. Wilder Penfield (1891- 1976) and Dr. Theodore Rassmussen (1959-1968). In 1968 he joined the faculty of UT Health Science Center San Antonio and entered private practice. After retiring in 1994, he dedicated an extraordinary amount of time, energy and support to notable medical missions in Haiti, Guyana and Nigeria. He died in 2013, at his home in San Antonio with his family by his side.
In this video, Dr. Branch and members of his family reflect on his profound career and the joy found in in helping his community and bestowing a tradition of service within his family.

Award Recipients

Vetro Art Glass designed by David Gappa

Glass artist David Gappa created this glass neuron installation titled “Introspection” to mimic the mind for the Brain Performance Institute at the Center for BrainHealth in Dallas.

Glass artist David Gappa below his glass neuron installation “Introspection” at the Center for BrainHealth in Dallas. The artwork has been described as a visible interpretation of the communication between neurons.

David Gappa of Vetro Art Glass designed the Branch Award bowl. Each unique blown glass sculpture features a white, star-shaped object in the center to represent a neuron.
You can also check out his art installation at Center for BrainHealth in Dallas, Texas.
The Branch Award is embodied by a unique blown glass sculpture created by David Gappa of Vetro Art Glass, which features a white, star-shaped object in the center as an artistic representation of a neuron.