Students, Faculty and Staff Memorialize Jeanne Melton, D.H.A., with Prayer Service, Tree Planting

In early September, a group of Saint Louis University faculty, staff and students gathered to remember faculty member Jeanne Melton, D.H.A., director of pre-health and pre-law studies, who died last April.

Organized by Alpha Epsilon Delta, a student organization for those interested in pursuing careers in health care, the prayer service included the dedication of a flowering dogwood tree planted in Melton’s memory in Champlin Court, between Verhaegen and DuBourg halls. Robert Murphy, S.J., campus minister, led the group in a prayer and blessing of the tree.

“Dr. Melton was a caring, strong mentor to hundreds of pre-med and pre-health students at SLU, myself included,” said Rohan Prasad, a senior in the College for Public Health and Social Justice and a member of Alpha Epsilon Delta who led the effort to memorial effort. “I can personally say that the opportunities and guidance she gave me throughout my undergraduate career fostered my interest in medicine, and I know countless others who would say the same. Alpha Epsilon Delta decided to donate a tree as an everlasting symbol of Dr. Melton’s dedication to fostering the growth and development of students who would one day become health care professionals. We will miss Dr. Melton and her memory will live on through all of us.”