Don & Ulrike Gibbs Donate $50,000 to Tower of Care
Vernon Jubilee Hospital Foundation is pleased to announce that it has received a $50,000 donation for the $2.5 million Building a Tower of Care, Phase II Campaign.Vernon residents Don and Ulrike Gibbs generously donated to the Campaign, which was launched last November to raise funds for lifesaving equipment and furnishings for the 6th and 7th medical and inpatient floors at Vernon Jubilee Hospital. “The hospital expansion is a community project that most of the population will use and benefit from at some point in the future. Everyone will need the hospital one day or another,” says Mrs. Gibbs.
“We are very thankful for the generous support that Mr. & Mrs. Gibbs are providing to VJH and residents of the North Okanagan,” says Sue Beaudry, Director of Development for the Vernon Jubilee Hospital Foundation. “Their contribution is much-needed and helps inspire others in the community to take part in the Campaign.”
The couple has close ties to Vernon Jubilee Hospital; their four children were born at VJH and Mr. Gibbs has sat as a voluntary member of the VJH Ethics Committee for ten years. He and his wife have had interactions with other hospitals, but see Vernon Jubilee as part of this community’s core services. “It is a place where there is a stable pool of employees and physicians who have a long history of working together. VJH offers more neighbourly care, unlike the less personal environment that can be felt in hospitals that have higher staff turnover,” says Mr. Gibbs.The Gibbs's donation will be designated towards one of two Rehabilitation Activity Rooms that will allow post-surgical easy access to necessary rehabilitation equipment, enabling faster recovery times.
“We take a leadership role or work with others to get things done,” says Mrs. Gibbs. “Like Greatheart, we seek to assist others along their journey of life,” she says, in reference to the literary classic ‘Pilgrim’s Progress’.“Mr. & Mrs. Gibbs example of collaboration and their admirable concern for the well-being of others is at the heart of what we are working to achieve with Building a Tower of Care,” says Beaudry.
To date, the Building a Tower of Care Campaign Phase II has raised more than $626,519 towards its $2.5 million goal.