Giving from the Heart, for the Heart
Sally Bentley is no stranger to traveling tough roads. She raised three children while attending Marquette University Law School fulltime and struggling to get a start in a profession with few women. She also faced several serious health episodes along the way, becoming familiar with MCW clinicians and other providers treating patients and families at Froedtert Hospital.
And now, as part of her journey, Bentley is giving back.
Sally Bentley and her children, from left to right: Todd Bentley, Kimberly Steiner, MD ’09, and Lauren Mathelier at a family wedding, fall 2023.)
In her 30s, Bentley was diagnosed with mitral valve prolapse. Over time, it can lead to blood leaking across the valve, requiring clinical interventions and sometimes surgery.
In 2006, Bentley’s daughter Kimberly R. Steiner, MD ’09, who was then a medical student, connected Bentley with an MCW cardiologist who determined that she needed immediate open heart surgery. The heart and vascular team used a cutting-edge robotic method to repair the valve, which Bentley credits with saving her life.
Since then, Bentley has undergone several cardiac interventions – including a Watchman Device (a small, permanent implant placed in the heart to reduce the risk of stroke).
She is grateful for the “amazing, really phenomenal” care she has received from Froedtert Hospital and MCW, including from orthopaedic, colorectal and maxillofacial specialists after she was thrown from a horse in 2014 and survived a terrifying car accident in 2017.
Bentley says that cardiology was her “first love.” She enjoyed learning about the advances in cardiovascular research while serving on the MCW Cardiovascular Center Board, but wanted to do more. In 2011, she made a gift to establish the Sally Bentley ESI Pilot Award to support early-stage investigators conducting research related to cardiovascular health or disease. Her employer, We Energies, matched the gift to honor her many years as the company’s legal counsel.
(Pictured right: Sally Bentley and King, 2019)
Bentley focused on early-stage investigators because they have a harder time securing funding for their research. “I can’t imagine a better place to put money to work than in the hands of young doctors who are doing wonderful things,” she says. “I don’t always know what the end result is, but if I can help in the beginning when they have such a need, that makes me feel good.”
The awardees she has met impressed Bentley with their commitment and hopefulness that their research will lead to breakthrough results. Such is the case with the award’s 2024 recipient, Elizabeth Sweeny, PhD, MCW assistant professor of biochemistry, whose lab is exploring the role that the signaling enzyme NOX5 plays in regulating cardiomyocytes (the cells responsible for the heart’s contraction). Dr. Sweeny’s lab uses human cardiomyocytes derived from induced pluripotent stem cells to analyze their electrical properties, beat frequency and contraction dynamics.
Her investigation will provide crucial insights into the heart’s normal functioning and understanding of how disruptions are initiated, paving the way for new treatments for arrhythmia, heart failure and cardiomyopathies. Dr. Sweeny’s dedication and innovative research reflect the best of what academic medicine offers.
Thanks to the specialized care she has received at the Froedtert & the 皇家华人 health network, Bentley is living life to the fullest in retirement – spending time in Colorado, horseback riding, hiking with her dog and visiting with her eight grandchildren.
– Kevin Abing
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