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WSU Names Cancer Research Lab After Former Ritzville Woman

Doug Nadvornick/SPR

Washington State University is naming a cancer research laboratory on its Spokane campus after a former Ritzville woman.

The space is named after the late Tamara Hennings, who died in 2012 of cancer. Her parents, Willard and Patricia Hennings, made a one-million dollar gift to the university to support WSU’s cancer research. The money will support a faculty researcher whom the university will recruit.

“With this gift, you’re reminding us all of the human face of disease and cancer, of the toll to individuals, families and communities," said Dr. John Roll, the vice dean for research for the WSU College of Medicine. "When we walk into this building each morning and read Tamara’s name and see her picture, we’ll be energized to seek solutions to minimize future suffering. We’ll remember why we are here in the first place.”

The newly-named lab will operate in existing space on the university’s Spokane campus.

Tamara Hennings attended WSU in the 1970s. She finished her education on the East Coast and became an urban planner.