Dr. Gilbert makes being in two places at once possible.

Dr. Dore Gilbert, M.D., is a 28-year veteran of the Saddleback Valley Unified School District Board of Education who was recently awarded the Maureen DiMarco Award for exemplary leadership.

In assisting the needs of young people, honorees for the Maureen DiMarco Award must show exemplary and far-reaching leadership, inspire others to, and exhibit vision. The award was given to Gilbert by the Orange County School Boards Association and is only presented in years when the committee identifies worthy recipients.

“The Maureen DiMarco Award is a great honor since it is voted on by my peers and recognizes my lifelong commitment to our public schools,” he says.

Dr. Gilbert, a father of five, more than fulfills these requirements. He has served on the SVUSD Board of Education since 1981, been active in PTA and booster groups, has been a volunteer in the Fire Department and has coached Little League, Junior All-American Football, and AYSO soccer. In addition, Dr. Gilbert served on the Coastline Regional Occupational Program Board and as a member of Congressman Ron Packard's Steering Committee on Drugs and Alcohol Abuse.

Professionally, Dr. Gilbert is a world-renowned dermatologist who has guest-lectured many times on the latest technologies and medical breakthroughs, domestically and abroad.

“Besides my work on the school board, I have found the program I started at Hoag Hospital's Cancer Center called ‘Brighter Days’ to be the most rewarding. I have the opportunity to help cancer patients deal with their skin issues. It is incredibly uplifting to work with cancer patients. I am motivated by their determination,” he says.

Dr. Gilbert believes volunteering is important because he says the more we volunteer, the better our society will be.
“There are many of us more fortunate than others and our fellow citizens benefit from our help,” he says.

Dr. Gilbert says he also has an interest in serving in the military, and in May he was assigned the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the Medical Corps of the U.S. Army Reserve by the Army Board.

“I am presently waiting for my final paperwork and will hopefully leave for boot camp either Jan 20. or April 9. I am just waiting to hear back from the Army, and I have never served in our Armed Forces but have always felt that I should. I am very excited to serve and my family is very supportive,” he shares.

With his youngest son, Kevin, in the Marine Corps, and no more college educations to worry about, he says he realized that his time was either now or never (due to his age).

Dr. Gilbert, 59, who holds an undergraduate degree from UCSB and attended medical school at USC, has been married to his wife, Gloria for 33 years. The couple has five children: Melissa, Marty, Jake, Jeff and Kevin.

In his spare time, Dr. Gilbert enjoys gardening surfing, traveling and of course, volunteering. He says he likes this quote by Vince Lombardi: “The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of will.”