Photo by Amy Carper with Carper Creative Photography | Shot on location in the Little Rock River Market
Each year, community leaders put on their dancing shoes in hopes of winning the title that is earned at the Dancing with Our Stars Gala. All this fun and friendly competition among participants benefits the Children’s Tumor Foundation and supports the Arkansas chapter’s research and mission: to end and find a cure for neurofibromatosis, a genetic disorder that disturbs cell growth in the nervous system, causing tumors to form on nerve tissue.
Leading up to the grand event, we’re putting each star in the spotlight on our blog.
Meet Dr. Ali Krisht
Instructor: Allison Wilson with Shuffles and Ballet II
Dr. Ali Krisht is the director of the Arkansas Neuroscience Institute at St. Vincent Infirmary Medical Center in Little Rock. He and his team are expanding their world-renowned institute campus to treat more patients and train more physicians seeking to learn cutting edge surgical techniques.
After graduating with honors from the American University of Beirut School of Medicine in 1985, Dr. Krisht moved to the United States to complete his residency as a neurosurgeon at Emory University. Afterward he moved to Arkansas to begin his medical practice and has spent the last three decades dedicating his life to his patients, his community, and his family.
Dr. Krisht specializes in surgeries that most doctors would describe as inoperable. His areas of expertise are brain aneurysms, stroke and cerebrovascular disorders, brain tumors, complex skull base tumors, and pituitary tumors. He serves as the editor-in-chief of Contemporary Neurosurgery, and spends his “free time” teaching as a visiting professor, giving presentations, workshops, and lectures all over the world— including Taipei where he’s been granted honorary citizenship.
Long before Dr. Krisht was known for his steady hands, he was known for his quick, swift feet. He played college and professional soccer in Lebanon where he was awarded Athlete of the Year in 1980. He and his family are extremely active in sports; Dr. Krisht even hosts a friendly soccer match at his home every Sunday afternoon.
Dr. Krisht and his wife Nashwa Krisht, a dietitian, have been married for 30 wonderful years and have raised four children together: Geenah, Liana, Ayah, and Hasun. The Krisht fam loves traveling the world, taste testing delicious foods, and laughing together for days on end. They are active members in the community, both within the Natural State and across the country.
Dr. Krisht knows that cancer is a battle no one wants to face. Having lost both of his parents to cancer, he is fired up to dance in the name of ending Neurofibromatosis with the Children’s Tumor Foundation. He is thrilled to raise awareness and funding for such a great cause at Dancing with Our Stars this year.
On Thursday, September 6th Dr. Krisht will compete for the dancing title and mirror ball trophy at the gala, in addition to soliciting contributions + votes prior to the event.
