SARAH GAHAN (SALLY) BURTRAM - PHD
1933-2018
Sarah Gahan Burtram was born on February 4, 1933 in Birmingham, Alabama, the daughter of William Patrick and Charlotte Hilton Gahan. She died February 28, 2018. She is survived by her sister, Susan Gahan Andrews of DeLand, Florida, nephew, William Edward Andrews of Lake Helen, Florida and nephew, William Patrick Gahan III of San Antonio, Texas. A Memorial Service will be held on Tuesday, March 13 at 2 P.M. at Brazos Towers at Bayou Manor, 4141 South Braeswood Blvd. where she had lived for the past six years.
She was graduated from Dominican College, Houston, Texas with a Bachelor of Arts in Zoology; from Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri, Master of Arts in Health Care Administration, attended Stanford University, Palo Alto, California, and received a PhD from the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, School of Public Health in 1994.
From 1961 to 1970 she was Associate Director of School and Academic Coordinator at the Methodist Hospital School of Medical Technology in Houston, Texas. She was Vice-President of the Methodist Hospital System from 1972-1987. From January to November, 1990, she was a Health Science Specialist at the Veterans Administration Medical Center and the School of Public Health Center for the Health Policy Institute and from 1990-95 she was Senior Research Associate at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston School of Public Health. She was an Assistant Professor, Department of Health Administration at the University of Las Vegas in Nevada from 1995-96. Over the years she made a number of presentations at such places as Helsinki, Finland, Vancouver, BC, Baltimore, Maryland, and Stockholm, Sweden.
She was a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, a member of the American Society for Law, Medicine and Ethics, and a Fellow of the Royal Society for Health,
She was also a member of the Honorable Order of Kentucky Colonels.
Liking to travel, she visited among other places Mexico, China, Japan, Korea, Europe, Russia and Africa for many safaris. She also loved opera, the symphony, and the arts.
Sally Burtram was a long time supporter of the Houston Zoo and its efforts to conserve animals. After a number of years as a volunteer, she became a docent emeritus in 1998.
She was also a volunteer at the Houston Museum of Natural Science for over 20 years and logged over 1440 hours. She participated as a master docent in the HISD fourth grade program as well as Early Investigations programs. She also conducted tours of such special exhibits as Dead Sea Scrolls, Imperial Rome, Birth of Christianity, and Faberge. She served on the Volunteer Guild Board as Parliamentarian from 2009 to the present. Her last Board meeting was February 13, 2018. A fellow volunteer said “Dr. Sally was the best. She always greeted me with a smile and a compliment… I know that she was just as passionate about her work at the Houston Zoo as she was with HMNS. She always had a story to tell and you always walked away knowing a little bit more. That’s how she touched so many lives.”
Donations in her memory may be made to Brazos Towers at Bayou Manor to benefit the Employee Assistance Fund or the charity of your choice.