E-NEWSLETTER SIGNUP
Eagle Ridge Hospital (ERH) has been near and dear to my heart for many years, probably since my dad had his heart attack in 2008 and ERH saved his life. The time spent in the hospital with him during his recovery made me realize just how much our hospitals were lacking in the necessary equipment to provide the absolute best care for the people of our community. And so, my fundraising endeavours began…
September 2014 - Sleeper Chairs
We believe everyone should have a comfortable place to sleep if ever faced with needing to support a loved one in the hospital. At the time, I was having the Grand Opening of my new office in Coquitlam and saw an opportunity to support a cornerstone of the Tri-Cities community: The Eagle Ridge Hospital Foundation. They were in need of more sleeper chairs and with 70% of new hospital equipment purchases coming from fundraising dollars, I saw a unique chance to leverage my strong community presence and the generosity of my many clients. We collected raffle prizes valued at over $10,000 to encourage raffle ticket sales...and it worked! We were able to raise $11,295, most of which was dedicated to the purchase of 3 sleeper chairs.
In December 2015, after a very long-awaited arrival, the SLEEPER CHAIRS finally arrived. And I was so fortunate to share the ribbon cutting event with my dad, family, team, clients, former Mayor Mike Clay of Port Moody, Mayor Richard Stewart of Coquitlam, ERH staff and ERHF staff.
May 2016 – Vein Finder
Shortly after the arrival of the sleeper chairs, I found a new calling. The hospital needed a Vein Finder or rather, I needed a Vein Finder for my routine bloodwork, and if I needed a vein finder, then there were obviously many people in the community who also needed it. So, once again, we reached out to the community for raffle prizes and received cash donations this time too.
October 2017 – Bruce Kehler Cardiology
On April 21, 2017, the inevitable happened. My dad passed suddenly. To say my family and I were utterly devastated was (is) an understatement. He was an over-the-top generous person with a heart of gold so we wanted to honour his memory in a way that would truly speak to the person he was. With the hospital working on a large expansion at the time, our donation for Bruce Kehler Cardiology emerged and kicked off the fundraising goal of $5.0M that the hospital needed. And in November 2020, it finally opened and the space is beyond beautiful. My dad would be incredibly proud to see his memory and legacy honoured in this way.
July 2023 – Sharon Perry’s Breast Cancer Clinic
In January 2019, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. It has certainly been quite the journey and an eye-opener of how cancer is treated in our province. The bottom line – we need to do better!!! Although I may joke about it being named Sharon Perry’s Breast Cancer Clinic, the reality is that our local hospital needs a Breast Cancer Clinic. Our community needs more support and the pilot project that started after my diagnosis needs to be a permanent fixture in our community, and be much bigger and better.
With the Sharon Perry’s Breast Cancer Clinic on my mind these days, only time will tell what happens there. Either way, there is no denying that it just feels good to give where we live! (if you feel inclined to donate to this, designate it to “Other – Sharon Perry’s Breast Cancer Clinic”)