PICTON, June 27, 2024 – The Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Foundation (PECMHF) celebrated a successful year of fundraising at its annual meeting on June 27. PECMHF reported that the community stepped forward to help raise $4.2 million in the 2023/24 fiscal year ending on March 31.

The meeting, held at Wellings of Picton highlighted PECMHF’s achievements, particularly its two priority missions of fundraising work to provide leading-edge priority medical equipment at Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital (PECMH) and support of the community’s share of building the new hospital in The County.

Barbara McConnell, PECMHF’s outgoing chairperson, thanked the community for their generous support this year.

“Year in and year out, we raise money to purchase medical equipment for our County hospital and support regional healthcare, which is vitally important work. It ensures that our hospitals’ Care Champions have the equipment to treat us and their patients with the excellent care we greatly appreciate. As we know, the foundation is raising money for our new hospital. That’s an even bigger job with a target of $27 million. Just over $23 million has been raised in cash and pledges, with $4 million left. That is a great achievement that this entire community can be proud of. Now, with the naming of the successful contractor and shovels going into the ground imminently, the expectation is that we will open the doors of our new hospital late in 2027,” she said.

The Board Treasurer, David Griffith, reinforced the significant role PECMHF plays in raising money each year for medical equipment for our County hospital and the greater Quinte region.

“In the last fiscal year, PECMHF transferred more than $724,000 to Quinte Health to fulfill our responsibility to raise funds to pay for medical equipment,” he reported. These donations equipped PECMH’s Emergency Department with tools to conduct eye examinations. Vital signs monitors and a vein finder were also purchased for the department. New smart beds were added to the fleet, and the foundation contributed instalments towards the Intensive Care Unit located at Belleville General Hospital and the Regional Health Information System (RHIS) project (also known as Lumeo), which will increase efficiency in making medical records more accessible to health care professionals serving patients.

Griffith said the Back the Build campaign received $3.5 million in donations.

“The donations to our medical equipment fund and our Back the Build fund put us firmly on our path to raising the money we need to support our two important missions,” Griffith said. “We are very grateful for the support of the community.”

In her presentation at the AGM, McConnell said her participation on the volunteer board, first as a director and now finishing her chairperson term, has been deeply rewarding.

“I see the foundation’s mission to raise money to support quality healthcare for everyone in The County as one of the most critical services available in this community. I am very proud of the foundation board of directors, the campaign cabinet, and the staff for their commitment to advancing our efforts and reaching our goals. This volunteer board and our capable staff are worthy of our gratitude and appreciation for all they do to help ensure our healthcare team is supported and has the equipment and facilities needed to do their job well. Their dedication to keeping our County hospital strong is unsurpassed,” McConnell said.

With McConnell’s term as Chairperson ending, the Board Executive—consisting of the Chairperson, Vice Chairperson, Treasurer, Secretary, and Past Chairperson—will have new leadership moving forward. For the 2024/25 fiscal year, McConnell will be moving to the Past Chairperson role. Peggy Payne, who joined the board in 2023 as Vice-Chairperson, will move into the Chairperson role. David Griffith will remain the Treasurer, and Sherry Tait will remain the Secretary. The Vice Chairperson role is currently vacant.

After thanking the board and foundation team for their support during her five years as Chairperson, McConnell acknowledged the proposed Executive Team appointed to their roles at the meeting directly following the AGM.

McConnell stated her confidence in their ability to lead: "The foundation is in good hands for the coming years. I'm very proud to be part of the philanthropic community that supports our County Hospital so enthusiastically. I've witnessed our hospital provide outstanding care to many in our community. When illness strikes, we want to ensure our healthcare system has the latest technical and diagnostic services available in Prince Edward County, now and for years. It's comforting to know that a great hospital with fine facilities is nearby, staffed and equipped to make a difference.”

The foundation bid farewell to retiring directors Dennis Darby, Leo Finnegan, Ken Menlove, and Steve Geist. It welcomed one new member: Jeff DiBattista of Picton.

The 2024/25 PECMHF board consists of 14 directors: Barbara McConnell and Monica Alyea of Milford; Mohamed Khimji of Ameliasburgh; David Griffith of Lake on the Mountain; Doug Taylor of Wellington; Wendy Reid of Waupoos; and Jeff DiBattista, Sandra Foreman, Ann Galvin, Andy Janikowski, Peggy Payne, Susan Quaiff, Cliff Rice, and Sherry Tait, all of Picton. Biographies for all directors can be found at https://www.pecmhf.ca/WHO-WE-ARE.

Payne emphasized that the foundation’s future success will result from continued collaboration with community partners and support from donors across the region and beyond. She thanked the PECMHF staff, Shannon Coull and Briar Boyce, for their dedication and hard work.

“With our volunteer leadership, the community’s support, and the hospital auxiliary standing with us, we will help our hospital provide the best care possible to the residents and visitors of Prince Edward County. It is an honour to do such meaningful work that makes a difference in the lives of patients and their families.”

PECMHF’s audited financial statements will be available online later in July at https://www.pecmhf.ca/our-accountability.

To donate or for more information, please get in touch with the foundation at 613-476-1008 ext. 4507 or visit our website at www.pecmhf.ca.

The Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Foundation is a charitable organization dedicated to raising funds to advance health care for the people of Prince Edward County and the patients of the hospital.

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