A CELEBRATION OF GIVING

their support, going back to 2011, for Variety Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) patients and their families. Tanya was admitted to RCH’s Variety NICU in May 2011, carrying twin girls at 22 weeks. The tiny girls, Isabella at 475 grams and Brooklyn at 480 grams, were born on May 15, 2011. Sadly, two days later, the family had to say goodbye to little Brooklyn. Tanya recounts, “The NICU nurses made Brooklyn’s passing a peaceful, intimate moment for us, and for that, we will always hold them dear.” Isabella continued her NICU journey for 138 days and is now thriving in grade 6.

Brooklyn’s Wish Fund continues to help alleviate the financial stress of necessities like breast pumps, food and groceries, gas, parking, and transportation, to help families in situations like theirs so they can focus on supporting each other and their children. Brooklyn’s legacy is tremendous and deeply rooted in compassion and empathy, playing a significant role in reducing stress and anxiety during what is an incredibly challenging time for any family.

The Lewis Family Impacts Mental Health In Their Community

Mark and Lisa Lewis live in New Westminster and have always believed in the importance of giving back to their communities, both with their time and resources. Mark joined Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s Campaign cabinet in 2019. He worked tirelessly alongside the other Cabinet members to raise awareness and major gifts toward the multi-year, multiphase $1.49 billion redevelopment that will revolutionize the way the hospital delivers patient care by creating a world-class, state-of-theart hospital. As part of this work, Mark and Lisa chose to lead by example, making a $100,000 gift to Phase 1, the Mental Health and Substance Use Wellness Centre (MHSUWC).

Opened in 2020, the MHSUWC has doubled the hospital’s capacity to treat patients in need of mental health care. Featuring increased patient privacy, access to green space, as well as room for exercise and creativity, the centre has been designed to facilitate recovery. For Mark and Lisa, deciding where to direct their gift was a family decision that involved their two teenage children. “We discussed the various ways in which our donation could be utilized,” said Mark. “We decided to support the MHSUWC because not only is it meaningful for our family, it is also an area of significant need in the community.”

Cameron Belsher Supports The Care That Saved His Life

Cameron Belsher, the national leader of law firm McCarthy Tetrault’s Mergers and Acquisitions Group and former Chair of their Board of Partners, joined Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation’s Board in 2018, and was named Board Chair in 2021. Additionally, he was named Chair of the RCHF Campaign Cabinet, which raised awareness and funds for the hospital’s multi-year, multi-phase $1.49 billion redevelopment.

Cameron and his family live in New

Westminster and have a long history with RCH.

Not only were his children born there, Cameron has received interventional and ongoing cardiac care at RCH. It was very important to Cameron and his family to not only give his time, but also resources to the hospital that made such a difference in his life and that of his family. In 2022, Cameron and his family pledged $325,000 to support Cardiac Services in the new Jim Pattison Acute Care Tower, scheduled to open in 2025. Royal Columbian Hospital is the only centre in Fraser Health providing both cardiac surgery and interventional cardiac services.

ANESTHESIOLOGISTS OF RCH SUPPORT EDUCATION, RESEARCH, AND INNOVATION

In 2021, Anesthesiologists at Royal Columbian came together to make a collective gift of $121,400 to the Anesthesiology Innovation Fund. This fund supports professional development opportunities for Anesthesiologists and department staff, and clinical and research efforts of the Department of Anesthesiology and Peri-Operative Medicine. This fund also encourages and supports quality improvement projects.

Anesthesiologists play a crucial role in safe and successful surgeries across all areas of the hospital. RCH’s

Surgical Program provides the highest level of care in surgical services to a wide variety of programs including cardiac, trauma, high risk maternity, vascular, neuroscience, plastics, and orthopedics. Close to 10,000 surgical procedures are performed each year at RCH. Almost 50% of these patients are unscheduled, emergency procedures – the highest proportion in the province. This means that our staff must be able to adapt to a constantly changing work environment at a moment’s notice making the need for educational opportunities, as well as research and innovation, vital for successful patient outcomes.

Td Bank Group Spotlights Mental Health And Wellness

TD Bank Group is committed to enriching our communities by contributing to their social and economic development in long-lasting, sustainable ways. Since 2020, TD has given $30,000 in support of Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation for a variety of initiatives including the mental well-being of our frontline healthcare providers at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, their gift of $10,000 was directed towards two innovative programs to support patients in our Mental Health and Substance Use Wellness Centre – therapeutic gardening and music therapy. ■