Caring Relationships - Gundersen Health System

members of the community, familiar
with Gundersen Lutheran through
generations of experience. Others are
like my new friend Charles Harrison,
who was unfamiliar with the work of
the Foundation until earlier this year.
And in these few short months, what
a friend he has become!
I received a call from Mr. Harrison
out of the blue last February. He
was scheduled for hip replacement
surgery at Gundersen Lutheran
and was putting his estate in
order. Having decided to leave the
remainder of his assets to support
cancer research through the Foundation,
he wanted assistance with the
appropriate wording for his will. And
that is how I came to know more
about Charles Harrison: How he had
lost his beloved wife to lung cancer
three years ago. How they had lived
in various parts of the country and
decided to retire here years ago for
the hunting, fishing, and excellent
healthcare. How he had received
all his medical care at Gundersen
Lutheran and had such high regard
for all his physicians and caregivers.
Since Charles’s successful surgery,
his relationship with the Foundation
has simply blossomed. He has met
other members of the Legacy Society
who share his philanthropic interests.
He’s learned more about our work in
the areas of medical education and
research. He is deriving so much joy
from his involvement that he’s taken
his giving a step further. This fall, he
completed a charitable gift annuity
that allows him to see results from his
generosity now, while he is still here
to enjoy it in full measure.
As we sat over coffee at his
kitchen table, finalizing the
paperwork for his gift, Charles
Harrison observed that like many
people his age, he is constantly
receiving annuity solicitations. “But
I bet none of those people would sit
down and have a cup of coffee with
me,” he said. And to me, that simple
observation illustrates everything
our Foundation is about. Caring
relationships, with caring people.
United by a
Common Thread
David Amborn, CFRE
Senior Director of Development
A
charismatic visionary. A
dedicated philanthropist. A
passionate communitarian.
A skillful diagnostic expert. The
common thread that unites them?
Gundersen Lutheran Medical
Foundation, and our commitment to
enhance and support the health of our
communities.
The four individuals I’m referring
to share a relationship to a common
cause: childhood literacy. The late
Dr. Adolf Gundersen was a visionary
in this area, an early and visible
advocate for the role of medical
providers in promoting reading
skills. The late Esther Dykstra was
a generous benefactor of many
children’s issues, and established
a permanent endowment fund to
provide ongoing support for programs
which address pediatric disabilities,
including reading disabilities. David
Friedman and his wife, Therese, are
well-known within the La Crosse
and surrounding community for their
involvement in the non-profit Read
Clinic, which offers tutorial services
to area students. Debbie Olufs,
PhD, is the director of Gundersen
Lutheran’s Comprehensive Child
Care Center (CCCC), and a pediatric
education specialist who helps
children and families struggling with
learning challenges.
Foundation grants provide the
thread linking all their work, their
legacies, and their intentions.
Gundersen Lutheran’s Reach
Out and Read program, which
purchases books for pediatricians to
give to parents during their child’s
regular wellness visits, received
grant funding again this year for the
La Crosse and Onalaska campus
programs. An additional grant
provides for program expansion to
the new health and wellness center
at Ashley Furniture in Arcadia.
In 2008, the Foundation granted
$15,000 to the Read Clinic to provide
scholarships for students of families
unable to pay for tutoring sessions. A
Children’s Miracle Network ® grant
of $30,000 to the CCCC helps offset
fees for diagnostic services provided
to indigent families.
Relationships like these—fostered
by the Foundation, made possible
by the generous support of our
donors—often feel like “six degrees
of separation” that have yet to play
out. Isn’t it inspiring to think of the
continuing domino effect, as future
lives are changed for the better as a
result of your charitable investment?
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