Stem cells may provide a built-in repair system for the body, with their ability to replicate and develop into many functional cell types. World-renowned UCLA faculty determined to push the envelope in this emerging field are pooling their leading-edge expertise at the UCLA Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Medicine. The institute is a multi-disciplinary collaboration of the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science, UCLA’s Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, and the UCLA College of Letters and Science.     This year, Alice Stoessel ’44 donated funds to the institute through a charitable gift annuity. In return, she benefits from a fixed annual income for life and a charitable deduction for a portion of the fair market value of the gift. With her B.S. in nursing from UCLA and career as a public health nurse, Alice appreciates the promise of stem cells – even more since her husband, Robert, died from Parkinson’s disease in 2001. “My hope is that my gift will help scientists find answers for these life-threatening diseases.”