Dr. Jay Perniciaro
The Price of
the Ticket
When LIFE alumnus Dr. Jay Perniciaro attended the
University, it was known as Life College of Chiropractic, and
Dr. Sid Williams was at the helm. That was 1991, and in the 27
years since, both he and the school have made leaps and bounds
into the future. Of course, 27 years is not a very long time for a
university that may have been around for a couple hundred years,
but that’s more than half of the time LIFE has been in existence,
and they have used that time to establish themself as the leader in
vitalistic health care.
As Perniciaro puts it, “Back in the late 80s and early 90s, it
was tremendously different around campus. The school was in
transition – we started in some old Lockheed buildings, and
while I was on campus, thanks to Dr. Sid Williams’s vision, we
began transitioning over to the campus we see today. I got to be
in the middle of the construction and see the ‘before’ and ‘after’
firsthand. It was an astounding time to be at LIFE.”
Raised in Kenner, Louisiana, Perniciaro received his Bachelor of
Science degree from the University of New Orleans in 1984, and
by 25, had reached the top of his profession. He said that as he
was thinking about his career, he looked around and considered
where he would go next. Perhaps one day taking the boss’s job?
He decided that he simply did not want it and, around the same
time, got into a car accident. Perhaps that was great timing for him
since, as he puts it, “I was always very high strung, losing my hair,
had bleeding ulcers, allergies, sinus problems, headaches and
neck pain.” Plus, he says the accident just made everything worse.
After trying the traditional treatment options available, he went to
a chiropractor, and within three short months, he had eliminated
every one of his maladies. He explains, “Everything was better.
And I mean everything! It amazed me that my stomach had healed,
my allergies went away and my sinus problems cleared up without
any medicine.” After nudging the doctor about “what he had done”
to him, the reply was simply “Chiropractic.”
Perniciaro was intrigued about the power of Chiropractic; so much
so that he decided then and there to pursue a career in it himself.
When he queried the doctor as to what his next step should be,
the response was, “You need to go to LIFE. You need to go to LIFE
because that’s where Sid Williams is.”
About his LIFE experience, Perniciaro says that he is grateful
for the thorough education that he received. He notes that he
has hired and trained eleven associates in his practice and
when looking for new ones, always looks for the LIFE grads. He
says that he has strayed and hired from other schools though
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and sometimes regrets it. “LIFE just seems to graduate a better
chiropractor. I really believe that all roads lead to LIFE. Dr. Sid got
us started, and Dr. Riekeman has kept us going by taking us to the
next level,” he emphasizes.
“A sense of self-preservation” is how Perniciaro describes why he
gives back to Life University. Also echoing LIFE’s Lasting Purpose
(To Give, To Do, To Love, To Serve – Out of a Sense of Abundance),
he adds that those who have been fortunate
enough to do well have an obligation to
give back to the profession that got them to
where they are. He adds, “Since I don’t have
a lot of time to donate to the University and
all of my love and passion goes to LIFE, I
thought that the best way to help is to endow
financial stability whenever possible.”
Perniciaro says that Life University defined
him as a person and gave him a vehicle
by which he could accomplish his goals
and objectives. And as a tribute to the
University’s importance to him, he says that
every time he achieves a goal, he remembers
just how far both he and the University have
come from their days in the old Lockheed
buildings.
He continues, “And I think that all of the
people who are in the President’s Circle would agree with me that
was a breeding ground for some amazing stuff … some incredible
life-changing events and experiences that set the foundation for
everything that I’ve done for the last 27 years. I want to make sure
that the next generation feels that kind of passion.”
F E A T U R E D DONOR
Dr. Jay Perniciaro
So that the next generation and ones that follow will have that
opportunity, Perniciaro generously gives back to LIFE. He
acknowledges both the personal and financial sacrifice that
students make out of dedication to their education. He sees the
unique bond that LIFE students have to the University and knows
that it is much stronger than the one most students have with their
schools.
And finally, Perniciaro makes no light of the debt that students
may carry to pursue their education. But his advice is to
“ … remember that any debt that you have for obtaining your
education, you should think of as your ticket to the show. If you
want to get in and see the show, the price of the ticket, I’ll tell you,
is definitely worth it.”
Perniciaro encourages all alumni to think about how far they have
come after obtaining their education at Life University, and to
them he says, “You have to pave the way for the next generation.
You have to take the baton and carry it across the finish line. We
each help win the race by donating generously.”
Dr. Jay Perniciaro lives in
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
and serves as the Clinic
Administrator of Total
Care Injury and Pain
Centers with offices
in Donaldsonville,
Plaquemine, Baton
Rouge, Denham Springs
and Gonzales, Louisiana.