Preparation of consolidated 2023 charitable donation receipts is underway

Blue heart icon with hospital icon inside

As you turn your attention to income tax preparation, production of PRHC Foundation consolidated charitable donation receipts for 2023 will soon be underway (for those eligible to receive one*).

Look for them in the mail starting February 23rd, 2024 and allow 5-10 days for mail delivery. If you’re expecting a consolidated receipt and haven’t received it by March 10th, please call us at 705-876-5000 or send us an email with your full name and mailing address.

Thank you, donors!

*Consolidated charitable donation receipts are prepared for donors who choose to give monthly. If you were previously issued a charitable donation receipt for a one-time 2023 gift and are requesting a duplicate, please let us know your full name, mailing address and 2023 donation amount. We’ll reissue your receipt and get it in the mail or email (your preference) to you within 10 business days.

PRHC atrium named in honour of Dr. Anne Keenleyside’s $2 million legacy gift in support of cancer care innovation

The atrium of Peterborough Regional Health Centre’s (PRHC) fourth-floor lobby has been freshly unveiled as the Anne Keenleyside & Family Atrium. The naming is in honour of a $2 million estate gift to the Peterborough Regional Health Centre Foundation from Dr. Anne Keenleyside, a highly respected Trent University professor of bioarcheology who passed away in October of 2022 after succumbing to cancer.

Continue reading

The Lloyds are part of a cycle of generosity that spans generations

Griffith Lloyd says, “It’s incredible to think about how much our lives today are shaped by the legacy of those who came before us.”

The cottage where he and his wife, Tina, spend half the year is housed on land passed down from his grandfather to his children. Griffith first stepped foot on this land at seven weeks old, a tiny baby bundled in the arms of his mother. “So, you can just imagine how much this place means to me, even all these decades later!” he says.

Griffith and Tina hand-built the cottage themselves. With painstaking determination, they pushed up big frames for the walls and installed ceiling beams. It was a labour of love that they worked on, together. “In fact, everything we’ve done throughout our 63-year marriage has been accomplished as a team,” says Griffith. “But it’s also been accomplished thanks to the generosity of our parents. Now, we’re working on paying that good fortune forward.”

One way they’ve chosen to do that is by supporting Peterborough Regional Health Centre, their regional hospital, through the PRHC Foundation. While they haven’t yet needed care from the hospital themselves, they find it reassuring to know there is such a well-equipped facility close to home.

Griffith and Tina first gave to PRHC through a 10-year endowment, and now they give what they can each year. “We see philanthropy as a special way to thank our parents for all they did for us,” explains Griffith. “Both Tina and I were shown the value of hard work and kindness by our families… And, unfortunately, we were also shown the critical importance of good healthcare.”

When Griffith and Tina first met working at the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) in the 1950s, he was surprised to discover her father was none other than his public school vice principal. “You could say he and I were already familiar with one another – I spent a good chunk of my school career warming the bench outside of his office. I’m lucky he didn’t hold it against me,” jokes Griffith. He and Tina’s father actually became close friends – Griffith looked to him as another father figure in his life.

Unfortunately, their relationship ended all too soon. Tina’s father was only in his late 40s when he first developed a heart problem that worsened over the years until he couldn’t even catch his breath. He passed away on the very day he was meant to attend a party celebrating his own retirement. “Unfortunately, his premature death meant that he lost out on the chance to meet all of his amazing grandchildren,” says Griffith.

Griffith’s father was more fortunate. He spent more than 30 years enjoying retirement, including lots of time with his grandchildren, before he passed away. “We wish Tina’s father had that same opportunity – and we believe that, with more recent advances in science, he could have lived longer. No family should lose out on the chance to share those precious years with their loved ones.” By supporting PRHC, Griffith and Tina are choosing to invest in both innovation and quality care, which might give other families more of that valuable time together.

“We want our local hospital to be able to keep pace with the rapid evolutions in technology, and we’ve been delighted to see our gifts put to use helping to update vital equipment. Believe me when I say, it’s truly gratifying to see your money doing good in your community,” says Griffith. “And while we’ve ensured our children and grandchildren will be taken care of beyond our years, it feels equally important to leave behind something more: we want to continue a legacy of generosity.”

They plan to allot a portion of their estate to organizations like the PRHC Foundation and hope their philanthropic example will inspire generations to come, just as they’ve been inspired by those who came before them. “As our families showed Tina and me, each of us has the opportunity to do good in this world. It’s what we choose to make of that opportunity that truly determines our legacy,” says Griffith.

For more information on legacy and planned giving, or to share your legacy donor story, please contact Lesley Heighway, President & CEO, at 705-743-2121, ext. 3859 or send her an email.

Donor-funded care close to home kept a young cancer patient’s family together at the holidays – help them ensure the same for others

City of Kawartha Lakes parents Ian and Michelle say a dark cloud was cast over their lives last year when doctors delivered the news that their four-year-old daughter, Summer, had hepatoblastoma, a rare, “one in a million” form of liver cancer. Doctors explained that the tumour was large and perilously close to major blood vessels in Summer’s liver. Ian and Michelle were left speechless, in shock.

As the family tried to wrap their heads around their little girl’s diagnosis, Summer immediately had to begin cancer treatment in Toronto – a considerable distance from their home. They found themselves in a wild juggling act that added another layer of uncertainty and fear to the situation: uprooting their family, finding childcare for their son, requesting a leave of absence from work, and grappling with growing travel expenses.

“The trip to Toronto for Summer’s initial treatment wasn’t easy for our family,” says Michelle. “We’d hit the road at 4:45 a.m. to beat the traffic, but waking our little one so early was tough. She often felt nauseous during the drive, so we kept sickness bags handy. Our son stayed with his grandma when we had to stay in Toronto. It was heartbreaking to be separated from him.”

Relief came when doctors informed Ian and Michelle that Summer could continue her critical cancer care at Peterborough Regional Health Centre. “We can’t begin to describe what it was like to watch our child go through this. It’s a heavy burden that no child, no family should bear,” says Ian. “But getting our daughter’s care close to home made the challenges of her disease a little easier. It was a glimmer of light in our darkest hour. We were even able to be together for the holidays last year.”

He and Michelle credit generous PRHC Foundation donors for their role in Summer’s care at PRHC, since community donations – not the government – funded the incredible amount of equipment used by PRHC’s compassionate doctors, nurses and staff to provide critical cancer care services, all under one roof.

“We’ll never be able to express how truly thankful we are for donors’ past support of PRHC. They helped the experts save her life,” Michelle says.

Those wonderful healthcare providers are another reason the family is grateful for Summer’s care being delivered at PRHC. “The doctors and nurses treated us like extended family,” says Ian.

Today, Summer is happy and healthy, doing all the things a five-year-old should be doing: dancing, gymnastics, and making her wish list for Santa. Ian and Michelle now take each day as it comes, cherishing every moment with their young family and being mindful of how precious their time together is.

Getting care close to home had such an impact on them that they want to make sure it remains a possibility for others from across the region. “After Summer’s treatment, we decided to become donors. We wanted to do something to help. To say thank you for the extraordinary care Summer received, while making things more bearable for other families like ours, for all patients at PRHC,” says Ian.

Those patients come from the city and county of Peterborough, Northumberland County, east Durham, the Haliburton Highlands, and Lindsay and the City of Kawartha Lakes. In fact, the hospital serves a population of 600,000 people. That means there a lot of loved ones across our region who might have to seek care from PRHC during one of the toughest moments in their lives.

That’s why, at this time of year especially, ambassadors like Ian and Michelle are asking you to reflect on the importance of family and community and decide to help more patients get the care they need, where and when they need it most – right here – by donating to the PRHC Foundation.

You, too, can help shape the future of patient care at your hospital. To donate or for more information, call 705-876-5000 or click here.