By These Healing Hands Commitment Ceremony
By These Healing Hands Commitment Ceremony
The People Will be Healed
• Marvin L. Crawford, MD M.Div., FACP
• Chief Celebrant and Founder
• Saunder Reid, Program Manager
• Ephraim Thomas, Program Coordinator
• DOM Administrative Team
• Department of Admissions & Student Affairs
• Department of Medical Education
• Office of Information Technology
• Student Government Association
• Department of Medicine
• Family & Friends
Special Thanks
• James A. McCoy, MD, FACS
• David Anderson, MD, FACP
• Victor Blake, MD, FACP
• Administrative Services
• Office of the President
• Office of the Dean
• Office of Institutional Advancement
• Office of Admissions & Student Affairs
• Office of Medical Education
• Marketing and Communications
• Department of Information Technology
• Ladies and Gentlemen of the White Coat Society
Inaugural Winter
By These Healing Hands Commitment Ceremony
Memories
Inaugural Winter By These Healing Hands Commitment Ceremony
Founder’s Letter
December 9, 2025
Greetings,
It is with great ebullience that I welcome you to the Morehouse School of Medicine chapter of By These Healing Hands Ceremony of the Ladies and Gentlemen of The White Coat Society inaugural winter celebration. This will be our sixteenth celebration dating back to 2011 when we first celebrated at Butler Street Christian Methodist Episcopal Church and the two subsequent years at Grady Hospital, our main clinical training site since 1990.
The ceremony was organized to celebrate the basic core of who we should be as change agents in communities and in relation with patients. In 2008 a class challenged Dr. Marvin Crawford on how we celebrate our great treatment and heartfelt care for patients. The response was that after you do it, you ritualize it to say this is what we believe and who we are. The ceremony was written and stored till 2011 when MSM was declared the most socially conscious AAMC med school. The writer felt it was an opportune time, though not yet embraced by MSM, to launch with the encouragement of Walkitra Alexander, who is now Dr. Walkitra Smith, Associate Professor of Family Medicine, pushing it and helping to plan it with Ms. Kersni Stewart, our only non-healthcare provider inductee.
At our first ceremony in 2011 the faculty and administration joined in high celebration as they welcomed our first 34 students under the direction of the founder and writer of the ceremony. The church provided the space, refreshments, the well wishes, and, along with our faculty, applauded and embraced every student. The enthusiastic reception by the church and encouragement propelled us to continue the ceremony. As the church members expressed, “We think all doctors should make a public declaration to show love towards their patients and treat them humanely.” The ceremony over the subsequent two years was held at Grady. At Grady Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice, who in 2014 after observing an overcrowded Grady auditorium for the celebration, welcomed us with open arms and support to the main campus. Since our inception, we have inducted over 400 students, faculty, and nurses, including our President, Academic Dean, other deans and most of our chairs.
On tonight we take special note on the induction of our first time participating Physician Assistant learners who will lead the ceremony and will make the oath to use their hands in their various areas of future specialties to fulfill the BTHH tenets of charitable giving, community service, and compassionate caring.
As always, we focus on what is happening in our nation and world that is antithetical to making healthcare available to all people. The recent challenges from the political scenes in the USA concerning increasing unemployment through massive layoffs, threats of hunger because of SNAP provisions delays or discontinuation, rescinding the affordable healthcare act, immigration policies with jailing of ill migrants and violence against innocent citizens stagnate healthcare equity from becoming a reality. We simply respond by lifting our voices and move swiftly in joining with others who promote equity and justice for all.
Let Our Hands Move To Heal
Let Our Hearts The Pains Of the Masses Feel
Let Our Hands Move To Heal That All People May Live
Yours in Healing,
Marvin L. Crawford, MD, M.Div., FACP Founder
History
This ceremony, born of the writer’s love for liturgy and ritual as a vehicle of cohesion and celebration of common ideas and principles, was first presented to the Morehouse School of Medicine 3rd year Internal Medicine students in 2006 who thought the idea of celebrating our commitment to compassionate caring was great and should be implemented. Marvin L. Crawford, MD, M.Div., FACP, Internal Medicine Clerkship Director wrote the ceremony. It was an appropriate time for the most prominent medical school, Morehouse School of Medicine, to kick off an event that celebrated compassion since the school had been cited by the New England Journal of Medicine as being the most socially conscious medical school in America. Since May of 2011, the ceremony has taken on a life of its own with the hope for expansion to other socially conscious medical schools who want to celebrate the compassionate healthcare provider.
Inaugural Winter
By These Healing Hands Commitment Ceremony
History Continued
Symbols
Los Curanderos Gown—Green trims for medicine
• Right lower pocket—small book symbolizing knowledge
• Left lower pocket—an item symbolizing clinical skills or area of expertise
• Left lower pocket—badge symbolizing compassion
Stoles & Cords
Symbolizing compassionate caring
Rituals
This ritual marks the beginning of what will become the pivotal ceremony in celebrating the commitment to compassionate care for healthcare providers and researchers.
A multicultural, spiritual celebration for the newly graduating healthcare providers, administrators, researcher matched students as a committed world changer through deeds that will close the healthcare equity gap.
By These Healing Hands Commitment Ceremony
Processional
Anthem*
Invocation .
Greeting .
Order of Celebration
Occasion .
Litany* .
Musical Selection .
Words of Hope
Role of Charitable
Giving
Role of Community Service
Role of Compassion in
Healthcare Delivery
.“Lift Every Voice & Sing.”
Chevienne Jones, D. Min.
Victor Blake, MD, MTS, FACP
Cinnamon Bradley, MD, FACP
Associate Dean, Student Affairs
J. Adrian Tyndal, MD, MPH
EVP for Health Affairs Professor & Dean
Krishna Louis
Krishna Louis
. Chevienne Jones, D.Min
Emmanuel Burns Raven Crowder
Kaitlyn Senott
Order of Celebration Continued
Commitment Pledge
History, Purpose and Symbols .
Faculty Induction .
Marvin L. Crawford, MD
Chief Celebrant
Marvin L. Crawford, MD
Chief Celebrant
Induction of Healthcare Providers . . .
Marvin Crawford & Pangela Dawson, PHD
Commitment Oath . . . . David Anderson, MD, FACP
International Anthem of Healthcare Providers.
Benediction* .
Recessional. .
“Let Our Hands Move to Heal”
. James McCoy, MD, FACS
“Let Our Hands Move To Heal”
Original Hymn”
Cheviene Jones, D. Min
Purpose
To celebrate the newly matched medical student’s commitment to uphold the social mission of healthcare through compassionate caring, charitable giving and community service for all people, especially the underserved and extension of healthcare to all the world.
By These Healing Hands Commitment Ceremony
The Litany
Leader: Honor those who provide healthcare for they are instruments of their Creator.
People: We will honor
Leader: Pray that they do it with compassion and in the spirit of humility.
People: We will pray
Leader: Pray for their success in understanding, preventing, diagnosing and treating disease.
People: For them we pray
Leader: Remember healing comes from on high and medicine from the earth; forever give thanks to the Creator.
People: We give thanks
All: Pray that their hands move to heal, and God’s people live.
The Benediction
And on this day, O’ God, we have lifted our hands to become instruments of your healing powers.
So blessed are our hands that will comfort mothers and hold newborn babies.
Blessed are our hands that will cradle children and guide adolescents.
Blessed are our hands that will maintain the health of adults.
Blessed are our hands that will hold the hands of seniors.
Blessed are our hands that will comfort those who return unto you.
Let us go now to heal your people.
Amen
Let Our Hands Move to Heal
1. Let our gifted hands move to heal,
And let all our deep love to feel
To help all God’s people to live
Prolonging their days, new hope we give.
2. Broken hearts we will feel
Compassion let us daily live
Open our eyes to see deep care
Reveal our sacred skills to share.
3. Let outstretched arms embrace,
Healing all genders, ages and race.
Let healthcare take its rightful place,
Avail to the entire human race.
4. Keepers of healing gifts
Let us practice and never tire.
May our minds new knowledge hear
Cure sickness far and sickness near.
Let Our Hands Move to Heal Continued
5. When our calling over,
Retire white coats on our open doors.
To the apprentice our skills pass
Perpetual healing to last.
Refrain:
Let our hands move to heal, Let our hands move to heal, Let God’s people live. Across the land, over the sea, healing will be for you and me. Let our hands move to heal.
Lyrics: Marvin L. Crawford, Sr.,
Tune: Marvin L. Crawford, Jr.,
By These Healing Hands Commitment Ceremony
International Anthem Of Healthcare Providers
Let Our Hands Move to Heal
Let our hands move— to heal
Let all deep love— to feel
To help God’s people all to live
Prolong their days, new hope— we give
Let our hands move to heal—
Let our hands move— to heal
For Broken hearts— we feel
Compassion let— us live
Open our eyes to see deep care
Reveal our sacred skills— to share
Let our hands move to heal—
Let our hands move— to heal
Let outstretched arms— embrace, Healing all age— and race
By These Healing Hands Commitment Ceremony
International Anthem Of Healthcare Providers
Let Our Hands Move to Heal Continued
Let healthcare take its rightful place, Avail to the whole hu—man rac.
Let our hands move to heal—
Let our hands move— to heal
Keepers of heal—ing gifts
We work and nev-er tire
May our minds new deep knowledge hear
Cure sickness far and sickness near
Let our hands move to heal—
Let our hands move— to heal
And when our call—ings done, Retire white coats— on doors.
To students near we pass our skills
Perpetual healing they will give
Let our hands move to heal—
Let our hands move— to heal
Inaugural Winter
By These Healing Hands Commitment Ceremony
International Anthem Of Healthcare Providers
Let Our Hands Move to Heal Continued
Refrain:
Let all God’s people live
All— God’s peo—ple live—
Across the sea— and o’er the fields—
Let our— hands move to heal
Lyrics: Marvin L. Crawford, Sr.,
Re-Arrangement: Oliver Nathan Greene, PhD
Commitment Oath
“I, (state name), will use my gift of knowledge, clinical and technical skills and my divinely guided will to deliver compassionate healthcare to all, regardless of ethnicity, creed, religion, gender or socioeconomic status.
I will use my resources and influence to obtain healthcare for all especially the underserved. I will promote compassionate care, passionate scholarship and practical applications of knowledge to close the healthcare gap.
By these hands, this I will do”.
By These Healing Hands Commitment
Lift Every Voice and Sing
James Weldon Johnson
Lift every voice and sing, till earth and heaven ring, Ring with the harmonies of liberty;
Let our rejoicing rise
High as the listening skies, Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.
Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us, Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us; facing the rising sun of our new day begun, let us march on till victory is won.
Stony the road we trod, bitter the chastening rod, felt in the days when hope unborn had died; yet with a steady beat, have not our weary feet come to the place for which our fathers died?
Lift Every Voice and Sing
James Weldon Johnson Continued
We have come over a way that with tears have been watered, We have come, treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered, out from the gloomy past, till now we stand at last where the white gleam of our bright star is cast.
God of our weary years, God of our silent tears, thou who hast brought us thus far on the way; thou who hast by thy might led us into the light, keep us forever in the path, we pray.
Inaugural Winter
By These Healing Hands Commitment Ceremony
“Ladies and Gentlemen of the White Coat Society” 2025 Student
Inductees
Brittany Amadi .
Stephanie Beauvais .
Somer Blake . .
Alexis Blount
Emmanuel Burns .
Arnesha Clark . .
Jasmin Clark (Massey) .
Raven Crowder .
Olufunmilayo Daudu
Joseph de Give .
Adia Dobbs .
Family Medicine
. Cardiology
. Dermatology
. Emergency Medicine
. Neurosurgery/ General Surgery
. Women’s Health
. Orthopedic Sports Med/ Internal Medicine
Pediatrics
Cardiology
Emergency Medicine/ Internal Medicine
Inaugural Winter
By These Healing Hands Commitment Ceremony
“Ladies and Gentlemen of the White Coat Society” 2025 Student Inductees Continued
Devon Herrmann
Orthopedic Sports Medicine
Patricia Kirabo
Lyjiria Lacy
Krishna Louis .
Brianna Nesbeth
Helena Quist
Kaitlyn M. Sennott
Helen Shoushtari
Taylor Toney
Dale Williams
OBGYN/ Internal Medicine
Orthopedic Surgery/ Sports Medicine
Family Medicine
Internal Medicine
Dermatology
Emergency Medicine
Urology
2025 Faculty Inductees
Uchenna Agbim, MD
Kaneka Sims, MD
Selection Criteria for Healthcare Providers
Provides healthcare to an array of persons, especially the underserved for 10 years or more; demonstrates compassion in their encounters with patients, students, staff and others; models compassionate caring, charitable giving and community service; and promotes compassion as the highest virtue of healthcare.
Selection Criteria for Faculty
Provides healthcare to an array of persons, especially the underserved for 10 years or more; demonstrates compassion in their encounters with patients, students, staff and others; models compassionate caring, charitable giving and community service; and promotes compassion as the highest virtue of healthcare.