Blanca Kent
MOUNT VERNON — Blanca Kent, M.D., 85, passed away Monday, April 7, 2008, at Knox Community Hospital in Mount Vernon.
She was born on May 1, 1922, to Benjamin Povoli and Nelly Pinto in Salta, Argentina. She was a longtime resident of Bexley and later moved to Mount Vernon. A dietician, physician, pediatric surgeon, and associate professor at Ohio State University, her distinguishing accomplishments include: Medical degree from Faculade Nacional de Medicina, Universidad de Brasil; master’s degree and Ph.D. from The Ohio State University; medical internships and residencies in Bolivia, Oregon, California, Ohio, Brazil, University of London, England, and at Alder Hay Hospital in Liverpool, England. She was the personal dietician to the president of Bolivia prior to finishing medical school. She was a past chief surgical resident at Columbus Children’s Hospital, director of surgical research at Columbus Children’s Hospital working on preservation by hyperbaric oxygen, partial liver transplantation and fetal skin graphing; and associate professor of surgery at The Ohio State University. She received numerous awards, research grants and fellowships including some from the Instituto Nacional de la Nutricion, The American College of Surgeons and the Columbus Surgical Society. She published and presented numerous papers for various medical journals around the world. She was on the attending staff at The Ohio State University Hospitals and on the active staff at Children’s Hospital, where she was responsible for groundbreaking research and practice of skin grafting techniques for burn patients. She saved or improved the lives of countless children and their families through her private practice that spanned more than 30 years.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Charles H. Kent.
She is survived by a brother, Benjamin (Nora) Povoli of Amherst, Mass.; sisters, Ana (Miguel) Rivadeneira of Grove City, Felisa Povoli of Miami, Fla., Graciela Povoli of Resistencia, Argentina, and Ofelia Povoli of Tucuman, Argentina; and numerous nieces, nephews and friends that will miss her dearly.
Funeral service will be Saturday, April 12, at 9:30 a.m. at Schoedinger State Street Chapel, 229 E. State St., Columbus, where the family will receive friends today from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. Father Kevin F. Lutz will officiate. Entombment at Green Lawn Cemetery Mausoleum.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that contributions be made to Foundation for Knox Community Hospital Hospice, c/o Carol Garner, 1330 Coshocton Road, Mount Vernon, OH 43050.