Doctor Luke Society inductees Dr. Sherilyn Willis, left, and Dr. Tom Lowery visit in the physicians area Thursday, Feb. 18, 2016, at Bethesda Health Clinic in Tyler. The Doctor Luke Society was formed at the clinic in 2004 to honor local doctors, based on the Biblical reference to St. Luke as "The Beloved Physician." (Andrew D. Brosig/Tyler Morning Telegraph via AP)

A Tyler nephrologist and an OB-GYN are slated to be the latest inductees to the Bethesda Health Clinic’s Doctor Luke Society.

The society plans to induct Drs. Sherilyn A. Willis and Tom A. Lowery during the 12th annual Doctor Luke Banquet and Awards Ceremony at Willow Brook Country Club on Feb. 27.

Dr. Willis and Lowery have served as volunteer Bethesda Health Clinic physicians for many years.

Lowery is president of the Bethesda Foundation board and previously served on the clinic’s board of directors.

“They’re giving; they’re serving; they’re helping other people, not looking for recognition,”Dr. John English, Bethesda Health Clinic’s CEO and medical director, said of the qualities Doctor Luke Society physicians possess.

Created by the Bethesda Health Clinic in 2004, the Doctor Luke Society provides a way to honor exceptional local physicians.

The society’s name comes from the biblical reference in Colossians 4:14, in which the Apostle Paul refers to St. Luke as “the beloved physician.”

An induction into the society provides a way to honor and appreciate people in the medical community who best embody St. Luke’s spirit, according to a news release about the event.

To date, the Doctor Luke Society has honored 36 local physicians, including Lowery and Dr. Willis.

Lowery, who has practiced medicine for 40 years, is a founding member of Tyler Nephrology Associates, which has become the largest provider of kidney care and dialysis in East Texas.

In 1987, the office teamed with East Texas Medical Center to open the only kidney transplant program in East Texas.

He also has served on numerous professional boards and was medical director of the East Texas Medical Center Transplant Program for 26 years until 2013.

Dr. Willis, who has practice for more than 10 years, is a physician/owner at Four Seasons Women’s Health, where she has worked for the past nine years.

She is active in the Tyler community as the volunteer medical director for the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners Program for the East Texas Medical Center, Mother Frances Hospital and the Children’s Advocacy Center of Smith County, according to information provided by the clinic.

Lowery said what he has enjoyed the most about being a doctor is helping others.

“You do get a lot of satisfaction about helping someone,” he said.

Dr. Willis said she has enjoyed the blessing of treating people through a good portion of their life and many milestones from high school through college, marriage and childbirth.

Bethesda Health Clinic is a faith-based nonprofit organization that exists to care for the working uninsured and underinsured people in the community. 

Twitter: @TMTEmily

 

If you go

Who: Bethesda Health Clinic

What: Doctor Luke Banquet and Awards Ceremony

When: Feb. 26

Where: Willow Brook Country Club

Tickets: Reservation required. Email Diane Thomason at dthomason@bethesdaclinic.org by Monday.