(Photo above: Members of the 160-person St. Charles team celebrate at the Heaven Can Wait 5K in Drake in Park last June | courtesy of St. Charles)
Although the past year has seen challenges in health care throughout the country, St. Charles has kept the focus on their vision: Creating America’s healthiest community, together. Community and philanthropy programs at St. Charles, along with donors and supporters, play a hugely important role in achieving this goal.
In 2017, St. Charles:
1. Broke ground and raised more than $1 million from community members, local businesses and foundations toward our capital campaign to help build a new St. Charles Family Care, which will provide expanded access to health care for La Pine other nearby underserved communities.
2. Awarded nearly $115,000 in mini-grants for 36 caregiver-identified projects across St. Charles Health System. Projects included car seat safety courses, an ICU orientation video, “The Littlest Reader” project at the Bend NICU and the Jefferson County community table project to be built by Madras High School students out of reclaimed materials and installed in the cafeteria at St. Charles Madras
3. Granted $331,000 to establish the child life specialist program at St. Charles, which will empower children and their families as they cope with the challenges of health care and hospitalization. A successful paddle raise at the 2017 Saints Gala contributed $140,000 to the program.
4. Adopted suicide prevention as a top public health priority. Toward this effort, St. Charles funded suicide prevention facilitator training for 20 community members who will conduct trainings throughout the tri-county area in English and Spanish and awarded $50,000 in suicide prevention grants to community groups.
5. Granted $300,000 to various projects across St. Charles Health System ranging from vital equipment such as vein finders to aid caregivers starting IVs and specialty stretchers for trauma patients to a mural for outpatient rehab and the “Stop the Bleed” public education campaign to teach proper emergency bleeding control techniques.
6. Presented Dr. Gary J. Frei, Bend Memorial Clinic surgeon, with the North Star Physician of the Year Award at the 2017 Saints Gala in November. The award honors a local physician whose work has been defined by dedication to compassionate patient care, medical excellence and a commitment to improving the lives of Central Oregonians.
7. Supported communities creating health by investing in Crook County on the Move and Native Aspirations, and the Faith Based Network/CHIP program in Jefferson County. St. Charles works alongside these community teams to help improve health and well-being on a community level, organized and led by community members.
8. Collected stories from St. Charles caregivers on all four campuses and community members for the St. Charles centennial to be celebrated throughout 2018.
9. Donated $220,000 to community groups through the St. Charles Community Benefit program including Kemple Children’s Clinic for a school and community-based dental clinic,
Mosaic Medical to provide primary care to our homeless population through its mobile community clinic and Saving Grace Shelter healing from violence program, among many others
10. Raised a record-breaking $500,000 through St. Charles Foundation’s three major annual events: Heaven Can Wait 5K in June, the Saints Gala in November and the Hospice Christmas Auction held the first weekend of December each year in Prineville.
