Stater Bros. Charities Announces Leonard Bailey, MD 2010 Recipient of the Captain Leland F. Norton Award

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif., Feb. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- After 25 years of successful infant heart transplantation, Stater Bros. Charities is pleased to announce Dr. Leonard Bailey as the 2010 Recipient of the Captain Leland F. Norton Award.  

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Dr. Leonard Bailey developed a vision for infant heart transplantation during his residency program at Loma Linda University when he saw that otherwise perfect babies were dying from hypoplastic left heart syndrome - a congenital heart defect that defied successful reconstructive heart surgery.  He performed over 200 experimental transplantations in infant research animals to determine the feasibility of transplantation in the very young before his first human transplantation in October 1984 when he transplanted a baboon heart into the infant known as Baby Fae.  In November 1985, he performed the first successful human to human heart transplantation in a newborn baby.

"I like to think of my good friend Len as a miracle maker," said Jack H. Brown, Chairman and CEO of Stater Bros. Markets. "He defied the odds and criticisms to champion a procedure that has enabled countless babies to live into adulthood.  He is a true 'Hero with a Heart.'"  

Established at the inaugural Stater Bros. Charities Awards Banquet, the Norton Award is given to individuals who serve the communities they live in.  This year's Stater Bros. Charities Awards Banquet will be held on Sunday, February 28, 2010 at 5 p.m. at the Historic Mission Inn in Riverside.  The Awards Banquet is part of a larger event, the 3rd Annual Stater Bros. Charities Dave Stockton Heroes Challenge which will be held at the prestigious Victoria Club on Monday, March 1, 2010.  

About Stater Bros. Charities

In 2008, Stater Bros. established Stater Bros. Charities, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.  The purpose of Stater Bros. Charities is to give back to the communities Stater Bros. Markets is privileged to serve.  Since its creation two years ago, Stater Bros. Charities has provided funding to countless local organizations and causes that benefit hunger relief, children's welfare, education for both youth and adults, services for the elderly and care for our Nation's Veterans.  

About Stater Bros. Markets

Stater Bros. Markets was founded in 1936 in Yucaipa, California, and has grown steadily through the years to become the largest privately owned Supermarket Chain in Southern California and the largest employer in both San Bernardino County and Riverside County, with annual sales in 2009 of $3.77 billion.  The Company currently operates 167 Supermarkets, and there are over 19,000 members of the Stater Bros. Supermarket Family.  Last year, Stater Bros. donated more than $14 million in support of nonprofit organizations in the communities it serves and is the proud recipient of the "2010 Community Service Award" from the Supermarket Industry.

STATER BROS. CHARITIES PROVIDES PHILANTHROPIC SUPPORT TO

APPROVED NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS IN COMMUNITIES THROUGHOUT SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

SOURCE Stater Bros. Charities