< Friends In Deed > - St. Joseph Medical Center

Our Youngest
“Philanthropist”
...the spice of life
McCormick & Company supports board member’s
commitment to St. Joseph Medical Center
Madison Clark and her mother,
India Whitlock, visit the NICU
and meet with Nurse Manager,
Kelly Archer, R.N.
If you saw Madison “Matty”
Clark today, you’d have a
hard time imagining her as
the one pound preemie,
born at 30 weeks gestation,
and struggling for life five
years ago in our Neonatal
Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
Matty’s mother, India
Whitlock, now a branch
manager for a mortgage
company, never forgot the
care that Matty received
here, or the hardships she
knew faced single mothers
with premature babies.
The mother and daughter
team decided to start their
own candy company,
Matty’s Candy Shop, to
raise money to help single
mothers whose babies
need care in our NICU.
Kelly Asher, Nurse Manager
for NICU, explains what
a five year old’s gift can
mean to a struggling
mother. “We used Matty’s
first gift of $50 to buy gas
for a mother who couldn’t
afford to travel back and
forth from Aberdeen to
our NICU. It’s amazing
that a five year old can
have such an impact on a
mother and baby in need.”
When asked what she
wants to be when she
grows up, Matty’s answer
is not surprising, “a doctor
who helps babies.” In the
meantime, we are proud
that she is the youngest
member of our NICU team.
It is easy to see why Hamed Faridi, PhD
finds his career as the VP of Research &
Development at McCormick and his role
as a member of St. Joseph Medical Center’s
Operating Board such a satisfying match.
Faridi succinctly explains his passions by
quoting Charlemagne: “An herb is the friend
of physicians and the delight of chefs.” In
his role at McCormick, a global leader in
the manufacture and marketing of spices,
herbs and seasonings, Faridi oversees studies
at academic and research institutions to
expand knowledge of how the human body
may utilize the nutrients in spices and herbs
to promote health worldwide.
He is keenly aware of the importance of the
work being done both at McCormick and
St. Joseph to ensure that our community
has access to research and treatment creating
trends towards better health. The medical
center is indeed fortunate to have Faridi
on our board, not only for his insight and
enthusiasm for St. Joseph, but also because
of McCormick’s commitment to support
organizations where their employees have a
strong interest.
John McCormick, Chairman of the Charitable
Donations Committee for McCormick,
explains that the company donates money,
products and many hours of service to a
wide range of civic, educational, cultural
and health care organizations. “We are
particularly interested in making gifts in
areas where our own employees have a
passion. Because of Hamed’s involvement
at St. Joseph Medical Center, we were
delighted to support St. Joseph’s capital
campaign, “Investing in Excellence.”
The Foundation sincerely regrets errors and omissions from 2008 Honor Roll of Giving. The following
are corrections.
The Tau Society: Dr. and Mrs. Arthur Serpick
St. Joseph Society: Center for Eating Disorders, P.A.
Harry A. Brandt, M.D. and Joanna D. Brandt, M.D.
Steven F. Crawford, M.D. and Jill B. Crawford
Sister Pierre Society: Ms. Caroline A. Griffin and
Mr. Henry E. Dugan
Friends of St. Joseph Medical Center: Charlene Cochran
left to right: Hamed Faridi, PhD and his wife, Afsaneh, speak
with John Tolmie, St. Joseph President and CEO, at the medical
center’s annual Reception of Honor, held in November.
Faridi and McCormick, along with the
Charitable Donations Committee, directed
the company’s gift to The Heart Institute.
Comments Faridi, “At McCormick we are very
focused on excellence and our core competencies.
We have seen firsthand how The Heart Institute
has a similar model. This is borne out by
St. Joseph consistently being named a Top 100
Heart Hospital. McCormick is proud to be
associated with St. Joseph Medical Center and
delighted to have had a hand in the new Heart
Institute.” St. Joseph is equally gratified to have
McCormick be a community partner.
Charlemagne’s words, linking spice, health and
pleasure, are more than 1100 years old but
Faridi, and food lovers the world over, would
agree that his words ring as true today as they
did in the ninth century. At St. Joseph, we
couldn’t agree more.
Gifts in honor of Wealth Advocacy Partners:
Daneker, McIntire
SEI
John Hancock Financial Services
George Saltz
Templeton Radiology
A Winter 2009 St. Joseph Medical Center foundation / sjmcmd.org