Saint Francis Medical Center Auxiliary holds luncheon to present donation, award

The Saint Francis Medical Center Auxiliary recently presented $165,000, the first installment of a $500,000 pledge, to Saint Francis president and chief executive officer Steven C. Bjelich at the annual Auxiliary and Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon. The donation will be used for building a rooftop garden as part of the new combined Heart Hospital and Cancer Institute.

Also at the event, Lori Wills, past auxiliary president, received the 2008 Vernice V. Baumstark Award, created in honor of Vernice Baumstark, the first auxiliary president who served Saint Francis for 35 years.

Wills' volunteer service began in 1991. She has given more than 6,500 volunteer hours to the Medical Center and served as auxiliary president and on the foundation and auxiliary scholarship committee. She currently serves as a main lobby greeter.

"I started volunteering after my husband passed away. Originally I thought of it as a night away from my empty home. Over the past several years, it turned into so much more," she said.

"The best part of being a volunteer is helping people. Saint Francis can be a very overwhelming place, so it makes me feel good to play a part in a family's introduction to the medical center. Even if it's something small, like showing them to a department, I love how I feel inside knowing I've helped someone. I love being able to help people every time I volunteer," she said

The Saint Francis Auxiliary was founded in 1959 to help provide financial support to Saint Francis Medical Center through money raised from various fund-raising efforts. For more information on the Saint Francis Auxiliary or volunteer, call 331-5166. To learn more about the Heart Hospital and Cancer Institute at Saint Francis Medical Center, visit www.MoreForYou.md or call 331-5877.