MMC Conference Room Facelift
Sunday, March 30th, 2014 -- 8:14 AM
?On the lower level of Memorial Medical Center (MMC), located east of the physical therapy entrances, a simple door is marked ?conference rooms?. The rooms are used for a variety of features including educational talks for the community, medical center meetings, and the occasional non-profit meeting. In July of 2013, David Baltzer began serving an Interim CEO of Memorial Medical Center, and one of his primary roles was to work on strengthening the leadership of MMC through the Board of Directors. After serving in this capacity for six months, David, along with his wife Jody, made a decision concerning the conference rooms at Memorial Medical Center.David and Jody decided to make a gift to the Memorial Medical Center Foundation for a complete facelift of one of the conference rooms. ?The gift of the board room started with an observation that in our meeting room, if numbers were projected onto a screen, it was difficult and virtually impossible to read from across the room. In my experience, good information is vital to good decision-making. I thought that the Memorial Medical Center Board of Directors and the Foundation Board of Directors needed a place with dignity for thoughtful business discourse. As an experienced CEO, I know the challenges of funding projects that might seem relatively ?unimportant? in the face of immediate patient care challenges. It is a hard decision for the Board of Directors and leadership to prioritize so many needs. That is why we decided to fund this project in full with a personal donation. This gift was restricted for governance, from which all else flows,? commented Baltzer.
With the restricted gift, the Medical Center renovated the Wuethrich Board Room to accommodate leadership meetings. Fresh paint, new cupboards, state of the art electronics, and sound were a major part of the project.
?Restricted gifts to the Foundation allow our donors to be part of their donation. David and Jody Baltzer saw a need that resulted in a very generous financial gift. Would the Foundation fund this project without such a gift? Probably not, but David and Jody wanted this to happen and worked with the Foundation on making it a reality? commented Shelley Janke, Executive Director of the Memorial Medical Center Foundation.
Restricted giving to a non-profit organization, such as the MMC Foundation, is a gift of funds that is designated to be used only for a specific purpose. Donors have the ability to be part of their donation and work with the charitable organization to fulfill their wishes.
?We receive many restricted gifts throughout the year. Some examples include funds to help with mammograms for our patients, building repairs, and equipment? Janke continued. ?If a donor has an idea about a project and wants to fund it, we make every effort to work with the donor to make their wishes a reality.?
The Memorial Medical Center Foundation was created to help raise funds and awareness for our community?s health care need. The Foundation welcomes any comments or questions concerning restricted giving and invites the community to contact Shelley Janke, Executive Director of the Foundation at 715-743-8456.?
Feel free to contact us with questions and/or comments.