Many of those of us who have enjoyed a burger and a shake at, of all places, Lakeland Healthcare in St. Joseph will sincerely appreciate the news today that the Lakeland Health Auxiliary has pledged a substantive gift over the next five years toward the new Lakeland Medical Center Pavilion getting underway. The Auxiliary helps maintain the cafe at the hospital and they have just kicked in a pledge for half-a-million dollars for the Pavilion.
It's probably no coincidence either that the Auxiliary's dollars will help to fund the eating area of the new Pavilion where patients, staff and members of the community at large can enjoy future offerings. That area is slated to be on the second floor of the new facility, and appropriately will be named in honor of the Lakeland Health Auxiliary for this major contribution.
Through various fundraising initiatives, the Lakeland Health Auxiliary has contributed more than $4.9 million toward a number of different programs and services at Lakeland over the past 31 years. This tradition of philanthropy makes the Auxiliary the largest donor in the history of the Lakeland Health Foundations.
David Burghart is Vice President of Philanthropy and President of Lakeland Health Foundations. He responded to the major gift announcement by saying, “The Auxiliary is the most faithful source of funding to Lakeland as they continue to contribute to nearly every major project our organization embarks on.” He adds, “The efforts of these wonderful people can be felt throughout Lakeland by the myriad tasks they perform, in addition to their financial support. What they do for us makes a powerful impact every day.”
The Lakeland Health Auxiliary has a long history of supporting health care in southwest Michigan. In 2015, nearly 650 volunteers dedicated more than 68,000 hours of service to patients, residents, staff, and visitors throughout the health system. Volunteers provide a variety of services, such as assisting clinical staff in nursing units, driving courtesy carts, delivering mail to Lakeland departments, hosting blood drives, and serving customers in the café and gift shop.
As Dr. Loren Hamel, President & CEO of Lakeland Health puts it, “There is no better example of bringing your heart to work than to bless our community with your time and your skills.” He adds, “Our volunteers are a mission-critical way to help us save lives, enhance health, and serve our community.”
For more information about the Medical Center Pavilion, including an architectural animation of the new hospital, you can click this link:
http://www.LakelandHealth.org/Pavilion
To learn more about how you can support the project, contact the Lakeland Health Foundations at (269) 927-5143 or visit www.lakelandhealthfoundations.org
