Volunteers Celebrate 50 Years of Giving to Community

Yorkregion.com, February 17, 2012

This story appeared in the latest Heartbeat of our Community

Volunteers are often the first people you meet upon entering York Central Hospital or one of its community locations.

On Jan. 30, the Volunteer Association of York Central Hospital celebrated its 50th anniversary of commitment to the organization and the community, with a reception honouring 50 years of giving. Even before York Central Hospital was open to its first patients, volunteers played a vital role.

For 50 years, women, men and teenagers have supported patients and staff, and have conducted fundraising events to enhance services at the hospital.

Our dedicated volunteers come from across southwest York Region including

Richmond Hill, Thornhill, Vaughan and King Township.

At the reception in January, hospital president and CEO Altaf Stationwala said, “Our volunteers have consistently demonstrated their dedication to providing the best service to the community. When asked to spread the word that a hospital was coming to Richmond Hill or sew bed sheets before its opening, our volunteers responded. Without our volunteers, York Central Hospital would not be the friendly and caring organization it is known to be.”

Dina Palozzi, chair of the hospital’s board of directors added, “I would like to thank all of the volunteers from the past, present and future, who help shape the volunteering commitment. Our volunteers are truly valued members of the health care team.”

Over the years, approximately 30,000 people have volunteered their time and talent, enhancing the hospital experience for countless patients and families. Currently, more than 900 volunteers offer their time by lending assistance in the hospital or by raising funds for much needed equipment.

To inquire about student or adult volunteer opportunities at York Central Hospital, contact volunteer and community resources at volunteers@yorkcentral.on.ca.

2011 Moonlight & Magic Gala - Highlights Reel

Volunteer Association Celebrates 50 Years of Giving Back!

On January 30, 1962 in the midst of a blinding snow storm community minded residents of the town of Richmond Hill, met at the Lions Hall to discuss what they could offer to help the then-future hospital and its patients.

That night, the Volunteer Auxiliary (now called Volunteer Association) was born along with a lifelong commitment to giving for many community residents.

Fifty years later, volunteers continue to play a vital role at York Central Hospital.

Today, York Central Hospital hosted a special ceremony to celebrate 50 years of volunteering at York Central Hospital.

Yrok Central Hospital's NICU Celebrates Its First Anniversary!

York Central Hospital is celebrating the first anniversary of our new Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).

The NICU was opened on December 14, 2010 and has expanded from six to twelve stations and can accommodate up to 13 babies. This means as operational funding increases, York Central's dedicated team of paediatric professionals will eventually have the capacity to care for twice as many of our tiniest and most vulnerable babies as the old unit. Each spacious care station was carefully designed and equipped specifically for infants needing special care and includes an isolette and physiological monitor, intravenous pumps, a bedside computer documentation system and phototherapy units.

The new NICU has the appropriate space allotment and design to more easily accommodate life-saving equipment and greater flexibility to deal with emergency situations. Now, mothers and other family members have more privacy at each station allowing them to spend more personal and quality time with their newest additions.

Ultimately, this leads to improved development for babies with challenges at birth and allows families in our community to remain close to home while their precious infant is in our care and take their babies home sooner.

Thank you to all the staff, volunteers, physicians and our incredible donors, including the project's largest donor, The Volunteer Association of York Central Hospital, who helped make this project a reality!

Thank you to the following donors for generously funding the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit:

Casino and Hold’em Poker Event 2009

Casino and Hold’em Poker Event 2010

CIBC Wood Gundy

Fabrizio and Nicole Cortellucci Family

Nancy Coxford

Fieldgate Developments

Manuel Fiuza and Vilma Cortellucci-Fiuza Family

G & L Group – Joe and Lucy Lamanna

Great-West Life Assurance Company

Islamic Shia Ithna-Asheri Jamaat Of Toronto

J.P. Bickell Foundation

Rose Mary Tomei-Kehren and Bill Kehren
Carl George Klees

Francis Verena Klees

Shirley Eleanor Klees

William John Klees

Wm. J. Klees & Son Ltd.

The Marin/Alves Family

McDonalds Restaurants - Stephen Forman

McDonalds Restaurants - Peter Miller

Elson and Joyce Miles

Montesano Family/Primont Homes

Fausto and Silvana Palombo and Family

Proud Partners Golf Classic 2010

Vincenzo Pulla’s 80th Birthday

r.a.p.t. in health luncheon 2011

Richmond Hill Christian Community Church

Ross and Nicole Ferrier and Family

The Schad Foundation

Shoppers Drug Mart Tree of Life Campaign

Marita Simbul-Lezon

TACC Construction Co. Ltd.

The Volunteer Association of York Central Hospital

ZZEN Group of Companies Limited.

President's Corner - Gala Wrap Up

On Friday, November 4^th, a magical, record-breaking event took place: our 24^th annual gala.

The Moonlight & Magic themed-event, held at LeParc Markham, was filled with great music, delicious food, spectacular entertainment and a lot of inspirational support for our hospital, York Central.

Our gala broke not one, but two records this year: one for highest revenues at $571,000 and the other for the most guests in attendance. More than 1,000 guests, sponsors, volunteers and donors attended the sold-out event.

This year’s funds will go towards the purchase of a standardized, state-of-the-art infusion pump system for York Central Hospital. The new pump system increases patient safety by auto-programming medication dispensing. This allows nurses and other staff to provide more beside attention and education to our patients and their families. This, in turn, results in greater interaction and recovery planning, improving the overall patient experience. York Central Hospital is one of only three hospitals in the region that has this standardized pump system, which was a safety compliance rating of 99.6%.

The impact of this pump system are resounding: it frees up precious time for our staff to spend with their patients, it provides life-saving medications and pain relief to seven out of every 10 patients and importantly, one standardized pump system decreases the costs associated with having several systems throughout the hospital. It is through your generosity that this investment is possible and we are incredibly grateful.

As President & CEO of the Foundation, I’ve learned that as much as we try to inspire our donors, in fact, our donors are the ones who inspire us. It is so rewarding to see events like the Moonlight & Magic Gala come to life because of the generosity, support and dedication of volunteers, sponsors, donors and guests like each of you. We are especially thankful to Bell, who has been our generous Presenting Sponsor for the past two years.

An event of this magnitude takes hundreds of hours of planning from dedicated volunteers and donors. We are so fortunate to have such an incredible group of volunteers who have worked over the past year to ensure this gala’s success. Under the leadership of Gala Chair Julie Fuda, our volunteers have worked day and night, along with our Foundation staff, to collect auction items, set up the venue and ensure the finishing touches were in place. We cannot thank you, our volunteers and donors, enough for everything you have done for our Gala, and everything you continue to do moving forward.

York Central Hospital’s vision is to become the “finest community hospital in Canada”, and through your incredible generosity, we are well on our way to realizing this goal – thank you!

We sincerely appreciate your ongoing support of our hospital. Your gifts of time, talent and donations are truly making a difference in the lives of our grateful patients.

Wishing you the best of health,

Bill Leacy

President & CEO

Community Fundraiser: The Joy of Aging 2011

Volunteer Association Event - Diamonds and Denim

When:  Saturday, September 24, 2011
            6 p.m. to 1 a.m.
Where: Hilton Garden Inn, Vaughan
Dress:   Diamonds & Demin or Business Casual

For tickets and more information, please contact Yvonne Rowan, Committee Chair at 416.948.0841 or  yvonne.rowan@yahoo.ca                  

President's Corner - Honouring our incredible volunteers

This week marks one of the most important weeks of the year for our Foundation: National Volunteer Appreciation Week.

Our organization relies on the dedication, support and commitment of our volunteers in nearly every area of our daily work. From our Board of Directors to event committees to in-office support, our volunteers work tirelessly to help us become closer to realizing York Central Hospital’s vision of becoming the finest community hospital in Canada.

I feel that we’re blessed to have more than 120 volunteers on our committees, Board of Directors and in our office.

Their leadership, accountability and participation helped us exceed our fundraising goal last year. They’re ensured our events are as successful as possible. They assist us in the office with day-to-day activities. They provide a second, third and fourth opinion and they’ve opened the doors to many new prospects, donors and opportunities.

In addition to the many volunteers in our Foundation, we are incredibly grateful for the more than 900 volunteers at York Central Hospital. These men, women, students and community members play a pivotal role in both the Foundation and the Hospital. The Volunteer Association of York Central Hospital has donated more than $4.4 million to the Foundation towards funding priority projects and generously provide more than 85,000 hours of service each year to the hospital. Thank you to each one of the volunteers for their incredible commitment, service and support.

Our volunteers are fueled by the kindness of their own hearts and have personally taken it upon themselves to work towards making York Central Hospital a better place for our patients, staff and community. While this is the one week in the year that highlights their hard work, we are grateful for our volunteers each and every day. The Hospital and Foundation would truly not be the same without them.

On behalf of the entire York Central Hospital Foundation team, a sincere, heartfelt thank you to our incredible volunteers for everything they have done in the past and continue to do as we move forward!

Sincerely yours,

Bill Leacy

President & CEO