March 26, 2007/- Nearly 300 people attended the 8th Annual Founders’ Dinner on Saturday – one of the most successful fundraising dinners ever for Providence Continuing Care Centre (PCCC). Proceeds from this year’s event are expected to surpass the $32,000 grossed at the 2004 dinner. The money raised will go towards a specially equipped shuttle bus for use by patients and residents at PCCC’s St. Mary’s of the Lake Hospital, Mental Health Services site and Providence Manor.

“The Founders’ Dinner not only celebrated the unique mission of Providence Continuing Care Centre, it also helped raise money for a shuttle bus to transport residents and patients between our three sites and various other locations throughout the community,” said Andrea Panet, Chair of the Founders’ Dinner Committee. “The bus will provide a gift of independence and mobility – two things many of us take for granted.”

“I want to thank all of the people who participated in the PCCC Founders’ Dinner. Their commitment to this wonderful institution and its mission is very welcome as we begin the task of helping build a new hospital to replace PCCC’s St. Mary’s of the Lake Hospital and Mental Health Services sites,” said Roger Wright, Chair of the University Hospitals Kingston Foundation, which is the fundraising arm for Hotel Dieu Hospital, Kingston General Hospital and Providence Continuing Care Centre.

The theme of this year’s Founders’ Dinner was “A Gift of Wings”. It was selected in part to honour the founders of PCCC, the Sisters of Providence of St. Vincent de Paul. For more than 145 years the Sisters have brought comfort and support to the most vulnerable members of our community with respect, dignity and compassion. Today, the motivation of the Sisters continues to be a central aspect of PCCC’s mission.

The featured speaker for the dinner was author, aviator and photographer Carl Hiebert. Confined to a wheelchair since 1981, he continues to fly his open-cockpit ultralight aircraft across Canada taking photos.

“For people like Carl Hiebert the sky is not the limit, it’s just the beginning. The same can be said of the Founders of PCCC, the Sisters of Providence of St. Vincent de Paul,” said Gillian Little, Chair of the PCCC Foundation.

University Hospitals Kingston Foundation celebrated its first anniversary in October, 2006. In its first year of operation, some $4 million from almost 13,000 donors was raised for patient care, new equipment and research. The Foundation raises money for programs, equipment, education and research that benefit the 500,000 people in Kingston and Southeastern Ontario served by its three teaching hospitals.

To find out more about giving opportunities or to make a donation go online to www.kingstonhospitalsfoundation.ca, call 613-549-5452 or toll-free 866-549-5452.

Contact:
University Hospitals Kingston Foundation
John Suart
Manager, Marketing & Communications
Phone: (613) 549-5452 Ext. 5908
Email: john.suart@uhkf.ca