By Madeleine Fojtik
As Generous Hands celebrates its tenth anniversary, the group is recognizing Paula Schriemer who has served as president of Generous Hands from the beginning.
“Working with Generous Hands has been such an adventure for me,” said Schriemer. “Our Generous Hands Board, our executive director and all our supporters have really worked together to make this program succeed.”
Pat Moreno, principal of Sunset Lake Elementary where the original Generous Hands food backpack program was piloted, said of Schriemer, “She is very humble with her accomplishments. She has a great way of identifying a need, then coming to the rescue.”
Schriemer’s journey to Vicksburg started when she was growing up in suburban Detroit. After high school she entered the Inteflex Program at the University of Michigan, essentially receiving an undergraduate degree and an M.D. degree in an accelerated timeframe.
With academic interests directed toward science, Schriemer also knew she wanted to work with people. During medical school, Paula met David Schriemer and they eventually married.
After graduating from the University of Michigan Medical School, Paula and David both received their first choice of residency programs at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia. Finished with their training programs, they moved to Vicksburg to be close to their extended families.
Today, Dr. Paula Schriemer is an anesthesiologist in Kalamazooand Dr. David Schriemer is a Family Medicine Doctor in Vicksburg. More than anything else, she has contributed to the success of Generous Hands, acknowledges Moreno.