About The Health Foundation

Another successful year, AGM told

• Remarks by the Chair
• Presentation of the audit of the financial statements for 2007, by Rick Kozachenko of Parker Quine LLP;
• Election of Board Members
• Election of the executive of The Health Foundation

Evan Ortynsky opened the Annual Meeting by stating The Health Foundation had enjoyed a strong year in 2007, with tremendous public support and he wanted to convey his appreciation to six groups of people for their help in making The Health Foundation a success:

• Volunteers – About 140 people volunteer annually with The Health Foundation and work on everything from a regular shift in the Gift Shoppe in the Yorkton Regional Health Centre to volunteering in one of our annual events. People are wonderfully generous with the time they give, and we are really appreciative of their work.
• Board Members – This is a tremendously strong and professional Board, the leadership and direction they provide and the way everyone works together to accomplish our goals make this board a pleasure to work with.
• Sunrise Employees – Their efforts to provide excellent care and the work they do to help us raise funds for new equipment are a big part of our success, and a big part of why people support the work of The Health Foundation
• The Media – The local media report on the work and raise awareness regarding our fundraising projects. That awareness helps us to succeed. We value the time and energy media throughout Sunrise Health Region devote to covering the work of The Health Foundation, and we are grateful for their news coverage.
• Staff – On behalf of the Board he conveyed appreciation to the staff, Ross Fisher, Debbie Blommaert and Don Bruner, saying they do tremendous work for us. Their professionalism and competence inspires confidence in The Health Foundation.
• Our Donors – The people who make contributions to The Health Foundation are the people who step up to the plate to make a difference. They do what is necessary to make healthcare better in our communities. Our donors are the people who make us successful as an organization.

Finally, he pointed out that we did have a successful year last year, but a successful year for The Health Foundation has to be measured against the question: did we improve the level of care for the people in east central Saskatchewan? Did we make a difference?

"I think looking back at last year, with the purchase of digital mammography equipment, with the conferences sponsored for our nursing staff, with the smaller pieces of equipment like fetal monitors that were purchased, we can unquestionably say we made a difference, a very positive difference."

Following elections, the Board of The Health Foundation is as follows:

• Co-chair Evan Ortynsky
• Co-chair Adelyne Bobowski
• Treasurer Kevin Lukey
• Secretary Ruth Hahn

Directors are Lorne Kopelchuk and Jim Rediger of Canora; Vivianne Minken, Maxine Woodward and Gerry Peppler of Yorkton; Don Hood of Esterhazy; Joe Kirwan of Melville; Patti Hack of Foam Lake; and, Betty Michael of Saltcoats.

Rick Kozachenko of Parker Quine LLP presented the audited financial statements and reported that the financial statements fairly represent the financial position of The Health Foundation. Mr. Kozachenko pointed out that once again The Health Foundation is receiving an unqualified audit.

The Health Foundation

The Health Foundation of East Central Saskatchewan Inc. is a not-for-profit corporation registered with the Government of Saskatchewan, Department of Justice Corporations Branch. The provincial corporation registration number is 21255. The corporation is also registered as a non-profit charity with the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency of the Government of Canada, and has been issued the registered charity number 88681 4698 RR0001.

It receives no money from government, and operates independent from government and from the health region. Its only source of funds is the generous individuals both in and outside the region who want to help ensure that we can all receive the best possible acute and long-term health care.

The Board

The Health Foundation is governed by a board of directors. All but two of the directors are elected at an annual general meeting. The appointed members of the board are a representative of the Sunrise Health Region board, and the chief executive officer of the health region. Each director is elected for a term not to exceed three years, and in aggregate not to exceed six consecutive years. Approximately one-third of the board is elected each year.

The board members are dedicated community volunteers who receive no remuneration or honorarium for the work they do on the board and its committees.

The present board members are:

• Adelyne Bobowski of Yorkton, Co-Chair
• Patti Hack of Foam Lake
• Ruth Hahn of Yorkton, Board Secretary
• Don Hood of Esterhazy
• Joe Kirwan of Melville
• Lorne Kopelchuk of Canora
• Kevin Lukey of Yorkton, Treasurer
• Betty Michael of Saltcoats
• Vivianne Minken of Yorkton
• Evan Ortynsky of Yorkton, Co-Chair
• Gerry Peppler of Yorkton
• Jim Rediger of Canora
• Maxine Woodward of Yorkton

The purpose and work of The Health Foundation

The Health Foundation of East Central Saskatchewan accepts donations, bequests, and gifts from far and wide, and encourages and conducts a variety of community-based fundraising activities. The Health Foundation's mission is to support the equipment requirements, programs and services of health care facilities within the Sunrise Health Region.

Donations are received from individuals, from memorial tributes, from estates and other planned giving programs, from clubs and organizations, from corporations, and from The Health Foundation's own activities. The Health Foundation also operates the gift shop at the Regional Health Centre in Yorkton, staffed by a dedicated group of volunteers.

Our prime responsibility is to the donors who support the work of The Health Foundation. The wishes of donors regarding the use of their donation is respected. Donors may specify in which community, or for which facility the donation is to be used. The specific requirement is noted on the receipt, and our auditor verifies that the donation is used only for the purpose indicated.

For the convenience of our donors, donations are accepted at any of the care facilities in the health region. A temporary receipt will be provided at the time, and a permanent receipt will then be issued by The Health Foundation.

History of The Health Foundation

The Health Foundation was first established in the mid-1990s, along with the new health districts throughout Saskatchewan. Up until that time, each hospital, health care and long-term care facility in the district had its own fundraising programs.

In April of 1997, The East Central District Health Board Foundation, Inc. was incorporated and operated under the name East Central Health District Foundation.

When the hospital district was created through the amalgamation of several health boards in the region, many of the facilities set up trust funds with monies they had previously acquired. Some of the trust funds continue to be used to provide support for facilities in those communities.

The Yorkton Union Hospital, which had the largest pool of donated funds at the time, transferred its funds to the new foundation.

The Foundation was designated as the official organization to raise funds and issue charitable tax receipts for all facilities within the new health district.

The Executive Director at the time the foundation was established was Bonnie Jean Muir, and her assistant was Brandi LaBonte. Annette Popowich joined the foundation as the Administrative Assistant in mid-1998, and in April of 1999 Joe Laxdal became the Executive Director. In 2001, Gwen Bryksa assumed the duties of Administrative Assistant, and in 2003 that position was taken over by Joan Kozushka.

On January 1, 2000, the organization officially changed its name to The Health Foundation of East Central Saskatchewan, Inc. The new name better reflects the fact that those using the regional health facilities, and those wishing to support the work of The Foundation, come from many communities in eastern Saskatchewan, as well as a vast area of western Manitoba.

When the amalgamation of health districts into larger regions took place in the spring of 2002, the Sunrise Health Region came into being, incorporating the former East Central Health Region as well as the Assiniboia Health Region to the north, and the North Valley Health Region to the south. With that change, The Health Foundation expanded its scope of operations, assuming responsibility for fund-raising, and supporting the needs of health care, throughout the new region.

Joe Laxdal retired from The Health Foundation in the spring of 2005, when Ross Fisher became the Executive Director.