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September 25, 2006
Good Shepherd Independence Days to be Held October 13-14 to Dedicate South Allentown Campus
Boston Scientific Founder John Abele To Be Inducted into Good Shepherd Hall of Fame

Allentown—Good Shepherd Independence Days will be held October 13 and 14, at 850 South Fifth Street on Good Shepherd’s south Allentown campus. The two-day event will be highlighted by a ceremony at 11:30 a.m. Friday, October 13, to celebrate the completion of Good Shepherd’s south Allentown campus transformation. During that ceremony, Boston Scientific founder John Abele will be inducted into the Good Shepherd Hall of Fame. Abele will present a talk entitled “Ship in a Balloon: The Story of the Development of Less Invasive Medicine.”

Tours of the new Good Shepherd Health & Technology Center, located at 850 South Fifth Street, will be available from 1 to 5 p.m. October 13 and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on October 14. A technology vendor fair will be held from 1 to 5 p.m. on October 13 and from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on October 14 in the Conrad W. Raker Center at 601 St. John Street.

The public is invited to attend the free events, tour the new Health & Technology Center and stroll through the campus now known as Good Shepherd Plaza. RSVPs are being accepted for Good Shepherd Independence Days’ events by calling 1-888-44-REHAB (73422) toll free. Those attending the events are encouraged to park in the Good Shepherd parking deck at 850 South Fifth Street.

The schedule of events for Good Shepherd Independence Days:

Friday, October 13

• 11:30 a.m.
  * Campus Transformation Celebration Ceremony
  * Induction of John Abele into the Hall of Fame
• 12:30 p.m.
  * Complimentary lunch for ceremony attendees
• 1-5 p.m.
  * Health & Technology Center tours
  * Entertainment
  * Technology Vendor Fair in the Raker Center Multipurpose Room
  * Complimentary refreshments

Saturday, October 14

• 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
  * Health & Technology Center tours
  * Entertainment
  * Technology Vendor Fair in the Raker Center Multipurpose Room
  * Complimentary refreshments

The Good Shepherd Hall of Fame award originally was designed to honor national heroes with disabilities who overcame their challenges and inspired hope and optimism throughout the country. The criteria for the award were expanded several years ago to include extraordinary men and women who dedicate their talents to designing assistive technologies and improving the lives of persons with disabilities. John Abele, Boston Scientific’s Founder Chairman, is one of those people.

Abele has driven the advancement of less-invasive medical technology for more than 30 years. He has devoted his career to improving medical technology and its application. In 1969, Abele acquired an equity interest in Medi-tech, Inc., which developed and introduced that same year a steerable catheter, which became the first “alternative to surgery” product. In 1979, Abele partnered with Peter Nicholas to buy Medi-tech and the two formed Boston Scientific Corporation. In 2004, Boston Scientific expanded its portfolio into the rapidly growing microelectronic device market when it acquired Advanced Bionics, a company that manufacturers and markets implantable microelectronics for numerous neurological disorders.

A relatively new area of interest for Abele and his company is nanotechnology, which is expected to have a significant impact on medical care as its application moves into the biological world. Recent work has shown the potential for connecting microchips to the brain to restore sight or electro-active polymers that when stimulated contract like a muscle. These upcoming technologies have huge implications for people with a range of disabilities – from sight issues from aging to mobility issues from a severe accident.

Abele has been issued numerous patents and has published and lectured extensively on medical device technology and trends impacting health care. He has been associated with many technical developments, ranging from artificial kidneys to the first implantable pacemaker.