Community raises $30,000 for health care assistance
More than 200 people gathered at the Libby Memorial Events Center Saturday April 23, to help raise funds for a unique program to help community residents with the cost of specialty health care needs. The program is offered by Northwest Community Health Center, and provides assistance for patients struggling to pay for specialty care services and products not available from the center.
Through a combination of raffles, silent and live auctions and dinner tickets, the event raised more than $30,000 to help fund the program.
Northwests CHC executive director Maria Clemons said the program allows the health center to help patients cover the costs of things such as eyeglasses, dentures and specialist visits and procedures not offered by the health center. All of the money raised during the annual event is used for those efforts, none goes into the center’s operating budget.
“This fundraiser is about access to healthcare services; which are out of reach for many individuals that have financial barriers to care,” Clemons said. “I’m proud that Northwest Community Health Center can provide an avenue to assist people in getting this much needed care from other providers in our region. Saturday’s event is an amazing and humbling demonstration of the community’s willingness to come together and assist their friends and neighbors.“
During the event, participants had the opportunity to purchase raffle tickets to win a number of donated baskets as well as a rifle, a handgun and a vacation trip to the winner’s choice of one of several destinations. Shala White won the rifle, Terry Rayome-Kelly won the handgun and Paul Resch won the trip.