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Saint Joseph’s East Georgia Announces Second Phase of Philanthropic Campaign
ATLANTA—(June 1, 2009) – On the heels of a recent donation of more than $1 million by Linger Longer Development and the Reynolds family, the campaign to help Saint Joseph’s East Georgia raise $10 million to furnish and equip a replacement hospital for its current facility is moving into its next phase of fundraising.
More than half of the funds required have now been pledged by community residents who believe in the importance of establishing a state-of-the-art facility to better serve the medical needs of the surrounding area.
“Saint Joseph’s is an exceptional organization that delivers the finest medical services available, and we are fortunate that they are planning to establish a new hospital to serve residents throughout the region,” said Mercer Reynolds, Chairman of Reynolds Plantation. “We are proud to contribute to the project and thank the fundraising committee as well as all those who have contributed, or plan to do so in the future. We believe this will be an excellent addition to our community and something that will greatly increase the quality of life for all.”
Philanthropic efforts are being led by local volunteers who make up the SJEG Development Council. Despite the challenges of raising funds in the midst of this severe economic downturn, the Council has been able to make good progress in the first phase of the campaign. Volunteers will continue working in Phase II, which is planned to kick off in June and run through the summer, to maintain a widespread level of community support needed to reach its financial goal.
“We are very grateful for the generosity of all our donors thus far, and are optimistic about continuing to make progress over the coming months as we work to wrap up the campaign,” said John Hoffner, Campaign co-chair and SJEG board member. “The community has been receptive to our hard-working volunteers, but we still need significant help. We want to encourage everyone we can to become a part of our mission of bringing quality healthcare to the area.”
Hoffner also pointed out that since there are currently no plans to fund the replacement hospital through a bond issue or tax increase, the need for philanthropic support from the entire community has become increasingly important.
While the campaign will now focus on raising money to purchase the equipment necessary to get the hospital open, Saint Joseph’s still believes that the endowments for indigent care and research are vitally important to its mission, and, as such, plans to conduct another fund raising effort to meet these needs once the hospital opens.
As the campaign progresses, so do plans for the development of the hospital, slated for completion in 2012. Renderings for the new hospital were recently unveiled, offering a glimpse of the unique design that will house larger operating rooms equipped with advanced technologies, spacious patient rooms designed for comfort and healing, and expanded services and functions to directly enhance the quality of care for patients throughout the surrounding communities.
Join this worthy cause and commit today. All donations to the campaign are tax-deductible and pledges may be made over five years. To make a pledge, or for more information, contact Saint Joseph’s Mercy Foundation at (706) 999-9920.
