Meadow Lake Hospital Foundation Festival Of Trees was a success. (submitted/Facebook)

By Nicole Reis

Fundraising Tradition

Festival Of Trees banquet pushes MLHF closer to goal

Dec 2, 2019 | 5:00 PM

This year’s Festival of Trees banquet was a success according to The Meadow Lake Hospital Foundation (MLHF).

Don Marsh, board chairman said the foundation gathers funds for necessary health care equipment and this year’s banquet raised more than $100,000. Their goal for 2019 is $139,300. Nearly 240 people attended the event on Nov. 30.

“The Hospital Foundation’s mandate is to raise money for equipment for any of the health units in Meadow Lake that fall under the umbrella of the [health authority],” Marsh said.

Marsh has been on the foundation board nearly 17 years.

“The reason it’s so financially successful is that we’re so well supported both by people who come to the event and participate in the different things that raise money, but we’re well supported by volunteers that help to do the work and by the donations by virtually everything that help us get our costs to a bare minimum,” Marsh said. “All the labour is volunteered and so much of all the rest of it is donated that lets us make a big piece of money to put back into the community.”

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Marsh went on to say the funds raised will help purchase two items for a new dialysis unit, coming from Saskatchewan Health Authority along with extra equipment like an ice machine which keeps dialysis fluid at right temperature, a blanket warmer, two cardiac monitors and a cystoscope for the hospital.

The foundation is earmarked $50,000 for the equipment fit-up of the new Northland Pioneer Lodge which is slated for construction in 2020.

“We have been putting $25,000 into that fund for the last few years,“ he said. “There is two to three million needed in that fund. We’ve got a long way to go there.”

Marsh encourages anyone who is interested in joining the foundation’s board of directors or come to the next AGM meeting on Dec. 10 at 7 p.m. at the hospital’s cafeteria.

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nicole.reis@jpbg.ca

Twitter: @nicolereis7722