The University Hospitals Kingston Foundation (UHKF) recognized a few of Kingston’s outstanding philanthropists and volunteers at a small, private awards ceremony.
Every year, UHKF accepts nominations from the community for the Davies Award for Philanthropic Leadership, the Ian Wilson Award for Volunteerism, and the Sister Dorothy Fournier Award for Volunteerism. The recipients of the awards are chosen by the UHKF Board of Directors.
The following details on the award winners were provided by UHKF:
Davies Award recipients: Dr. David Cook; Cunningham Swan Carty Little & Bonham LLP; Volunteer Services to Hotel Dieu Hospital Site
The Davies Award recipients are individuals, organizations and community groups who have demonstrated outstanding philanthropic leadership benefitting Kingston’s healthcare facilities and ultimately, the care of our families, friends and neighbours in southeastern Ontario.
This year there were three winners of the Davies Award:
Dr. David Cook
Dr. Cook has been a UHKF donor since 2009. Until 2020 he gave more than $5,000, mainly to cancer-related programs through the Rose of Hope golf tournament. However, it was his $1 million gift in the fall of 2022 that demonstrated philanthropic leadership on an unprecedented scale.
The donation, in support of Palliative Care programs and services at Providence Care Hospital, was given in recognition of the wonderful care that his wife, Margaret, received in her final days. A portion of this incredible gift was used to create the Margaret Mary Cook Palliative Care Endowment Fund. This fund will help purchase equipment and comfort items for patients, support innovative medical education and research programs, and enhance services for patients coping with dementia, including respite care for their caregivers and family members.
Dr. Cook has also supported Queen’s School of Medicine with a medical bursary to support medical students that demonstrate financial need. It is clear that Dr. Cook is not just financially generous, but he is generous in spirit and has a sincere desire to help people in need—the individuals who will receive palliative care, but also their families and the staff that care for them. His (and Margaret’s) wish to give back and to help so many different people involved with palliative care is incredibly inspiring.
Cunningham Swan Carty Little & Bonham LLP
With over $306,000 in cumulative giving and a 400 per cent increase in their recent pledge, Cunningham Swan is a leader in health care philanthropy among the Kingston corporate community. Their pledge in support of KHSC redevelopment is one of the largest pledges from a local Kingston business. With the recognition of support from Cunningham Swan, there is hope to inspire other law firms and corporate service providers to consider supporting health care through their philanthropy.
Volunteer Services to Hotel Dieu Hospital Site
With over $3 million in cumulative giving, the Volunteer Services group for Hotel Dieu Hospital supports the programs and equipment that will have the greatest patient impact. Dating back to 1993, their giving has supported just about every department that operates out of the Hotel Dieu site from women’s health to bariatrics, endoscopy, ENT, mental health, cardiology, cancer and even research and education.
The funding from Hotel Dieu Hospital Volunteers is generated through their retail services at the Brockview Café, Brock Boutique and Snack Cart, which requires time and commitment from a great number of volunteers. With their primary and demanding role of recruiting, training, and managing all volunteers at Hotel Dieu, the Volunteers also take on the secondary role of fundraising partner to UHKF which has led to a long history of philanthropic support. This has been possible through the commitment of their board members.
The donations from Hotel Dieu Hospital Volunteers are the result of many hands coming together to support health care services at Hotel Dieu Hospital.
Ian Wilson Award recipient: Richard Kizell
The Ian Wilson Award was established in 2011 to honour individuals who, like Ian Wilson, set themselves apart by their incredible commitment, their undying enthusiasm, and the sheer number of hours they devote to their volunteer roles on behalf of UHKF and our healthcare organizations. Recipients are volunteers who demonstrate outstanding efforts in the solicitation of donations benefitting our healthcare facilities through an event, organized campaign or informal activity.
Richard Kizell is one of UHKF’s longest-standing volunteers and continues to be passionate about his community and charities that are close to his heart. He continues to be an advocate for and an integral part of health care philanthropy and doesn’t miss an opportunity to engage our community members, whenever possible. He remains humble about his volunteer efforts and works tirelessly to advance the work of the charitable organizations that he cares about. We are incredibly fortunate to have someone as talented, dedicated and loyal as Richard on our team.
Sister Dorothy Fournier Award recipient: Brooklyn Tryon
The Sister Dorothy Fournier Award for Volunteerism was created to recognize the outstanding contribution of long-time UHKF volunteer, Sister Dorothy (“Sister D”). The award is granted to an individual, organization or community group who has demonstrated outstanding volunteer commitment by dedicating their time to UHKF in support of work efforts, event preparation and mission moments, all to benefit health care in Kingston.
Brooklyn was only eight years old when she first volunteered with UHKF, helping us to announce the total raised by the Smile Cookie Campaign that year. Not only did Brooklyn hold up one of the numbers to display the dollars raised, but she also stood in front of the 20+ people in attendance to share her birth story, which included two months in the KGH NICU.
Since then Brooklyn has been a Smile Cookie volunteer every year, helping to raise funds and awareness for our NICU. This year, Brooklyn was one of the ambassadors for the Kids for Kids Hockey tournament which is celebrating its 25th year in 2023. Brooklyn’s story is featured in their publications and she was one of the guest speakers at the opening event, sharing her story with all of the 500+ participants and their families.
At just 12 years of age, Brooklyn has been volunteering her time for over 5 years already! Her willingness to brave the sometimes cold and wet weather to encourage people to buy Smile Cookies every year is truly inspiring. We have watched Brooklyn begin to grow into a confident young woman who is always willing to share her story at any event, large or small to inspire support for the NICU so that others can receive the same lifesaving care that she did.
Learn more about UHKF on their website: uhkf.ca/Home.
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