Angela Christine Birnbaum

Angela Christine Birnbaum, age 45, of Mandeville, Louisiana, passed away on June, 23, 2023. She was born on March 2, 1978 in Springfield, Illinois to Robert G. Birnbaum and Patricia A. (Killen) Williamson.

Angie is survived by her husband of over 20 years, Joshua Alvies and her daughter Caillen Alvies. She is also survived by her father, her brothers Nicholas and Andrew, and many loved relatives both familial and by marriage.

Angie is preceded in death by her mother, Patti.

While lost far too young, Angie leaves behind an indelible mark on the world through both her career and personal life. She graduated from Springfield High School in 1996, followed by receiving her Bachelor’s Degree in Biology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2001. She and Josh married in their hometown on December 21, 2002.

In 2004, Angie and Josh left their home to start Angie’s career in Biological Safety, beginning at New York Medical College in Valhalla, New York, where she later earned her Master’s Degree of Public Health in 2011. Angie later moved to Massachusetts to continue her career at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge.

Later, Angie moved to Kansas to serve as a Biosafety Officer at MRI Global, where she and Josh also welcomed their daughter Caillen in 2011, followed by another time in Massachusetts at Harvard University as the Director of Biological Safety and finally to Mandeville, Louisiana to serve as Executive Director of Biosafety, Biocontainment Operations, and Quality Assurance for Tulane University and Director of Biocontainment for the Tulane National Primate Research Center.

Beyond her career at these world-renowned institutions, Angie also volunteered her time and knowledge to the Departments of State and Defense for training colleagues from the Middle East and North Africa, traveling to nations like Jordan, Tanzania, Malaysia, and Morocco to spread best practices for biological safety worldwide. She previously served on the board of the Massachusetts Society for Medical Research, served as both Vice President and President of the Southern Biosafety Association and remained on the board, and held many positions for ABSA International, most recently as a Councilor.

For all that, Angie considered Caillen to be her greatest achievement, and to everyone who knows her family, they will notice the striking similarities between the two in appearance, ambition, and their persistent desire to support anyone in need.

Relatives and friends are invited to attend the memorial service at Grace Funeral Home, 450 Holy Trinity Drive, Covington, LA 70433 on Friday, July 7, 2023 at 12:00 PM with visitation beginning at 10:00 AM.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions in memory of Angie may be made to the American Diabetes Association at https://diabetes.org/, Northshore Humane Society in Covington, LA (from where she adopted her beloved cats) at https://northshorehumane.org/give, or to Caillen’s educational fund at www.ugift529.com with code J8J-58D).

Caillen would also love to receive memories of her mom from childhood, school, work, or any other friendship from all of the people who loved her dearly; please feel free to request her mailing address for notes you would like to mail, or use the online guestbook available at www.gracenorthshore.com.