Last Thursday evening, Northern Health hosted their annual Thank You Event to thank and acknowledge the generous support from our patrons and community over the past 12 months.

The event was held at Seafarers Residences Display Suite in Docklands, and was attended by Debra Bourne, Chief Operating Officer, Northern Health and Northern Health Foundation Board Directors, Northern Health Executive, staff and volunteers and Northern Health Foundation Patrons Josie Minniti, Bev Carman and Trudi Hay.

“Tonight, we acknowledge the efforts of our generous supporters and donors, and their contributions to the Northern Health Foundation. It is an opportunity for us to say thank you,” said Pina Di Donato, Acting Executive Director Public Affairs and Foundation.

This event was an extra special event, as it was the first face-to-face event hosted by the Foundation in 12 months due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We all know how challenging the past few years have been. The circumstances made it necessary to turn our attention to just getting through it in the best way possible,” said Pina.

“But throughout that time, more than ever, our health service and our staff felt supported by the community.”

Peter McWilliam, Deputy Chair, Northern Health Foundation, said, while it has been a challenging year for fundraising, the Foundation was able to fund almost $650,000 last year to support the health service.

“I would like to extend my sincerest gratitude to all of our generous supporters, patrons and corporate partners, dedicated volunteers, Northern Health staff and everyone who has contributed towards our fundraising efforts through donations, grants and support at out events,” he said.

“As the demand for health services in the north continues to increase, the Foundation will continue to do all it can to support Northern Health to provide outstanding healthcare for our community.”

A special thanks to Riverlee and in particular Tricia Lee and the Lee family for hosting the event at their spectacular venue.

Northern Health Foundation successfully fulfilled its commitments to Northern Health in 2021. Vital medical equipment was funded for our cancer services, including the purchase of additional car for the NOAH@Home Program, so that more cancer and haematology patients can receive chemotherapy and other supporting treatments from the comfort of their own home. The money for the car was raised through the Dry July campaign, with the Northern Health team raising almost $32,000.

Northern Health set up a Caring for Kids space, to help families who had to be separated during the height of the pandemic. Our local community came together by donating toys and other essential items for children in this space.

Our sponsors also continued to support our PhD scholarships and research programs.

The theme of the evening was ‘Be Part of our History’ – calling on our community and supporters to join us as Northern Health and Northern Health Foundation continues to be an innovation health service now and into the future.

The evening also included a presentation from Neil Strugnell, Head of Colorectal Surgery, to talk about the Foundation’s 2022-23 fundraising campaign for a new Colorectal Lab at Northern Health. This equipment will improve women’s health outcomes and the outcomes of patients with inflammatory bowel disease.

Watch the video below to hear firsthand experiences of staff and volunteers, and how they managed through the COVID-19 pandemic.

Featured image: Jake Gelvezon, Associate Nurse Unit Manager, Pandemic Ward