Foundation looks to future

Dreams have to be big. The Ellinwood Hospital Foundation, previously the Ellinwood Area Health Foundation, has been reorganized to become more effective and allow for more growth and support of the Ellinwood Hospital and Clinic.

“My main focus for the Foundation is to increase support,” explains Lindsey Bogner, Executive Director of the Foundation. “It’s imperative that we support our local hospital and help it thrive. We can do that three ways: becoming a patient, becoming a donor, or becoming a volunteer.”

In order to make it easier to do any of those things, the Foundation and Hospital are stepping up their public relations, by educating the public about what services are offered at the Hospital and offering opportunities to engage with the staff and providers.

By reorganizing and bringing in an executive director, the Foundation is able to spend more time in searching for appropriate grants, applying for tax credits and other government funding, and fundraising. The Foundation is growing so that it can offer donors three things: a reason to donate, a method to donate, and the resources for them to make educated decisions when investing and making charitable gifts.

The third option, becoming a volunteer, is the next step in the Foundation and Hospital’s plans. By starting a volunteering program to allow individuals and groups to volunteer at the hospital, it allows for better patient experiences.

“Bringing in volunteers lets our patients know that it’s not just the nurses and providers that look after them. It’s the entire community,” explains Kile Magner, Hospital CEO. “It lets them know they haven’t been forgotten.”