Headwaters hospital’s annual gala raises over $400,000

Written By Sam Odrowski

The local hospital saw incredible success with its annual gala, generating over $400,000 for the Headwaters Health Care Foundation (HHCF). 

The funds generated from the Together Again – A Night of Giving gala at Hockley Valley Resort on Sept. 23 will be used to purchase equipment for the hospital, which isn't covered by the government.

Headwaters Health Care Centre (HHCC) identified $185,000 worth of equipment they needed to fundraise for prior to the event for their obstetrics unit. The equipment includes three infant incubators priced at $50,000 each and a fetal monitor valued at $35,000. 

Over half of that goal was reached quickly during the gala, as the first pledge of support came from the Ledson family, who stood up and pledged $100,000. 

HHCF CEO K.C Carruthers said donations continued to pour in after that, through a live auction and pledges, creating charitable momentum for the evening.

“That got us started with a very inspirational gift to lead the way… and that was the real highlight, people's generosity to just make that outright donation to buy the equipment the hospital needs,” Carruthers noted. “It was a phenomenal success, and we exceeded our goal for sure.”

A total of 350 attendees gathered at Hockley Valley Resort in support of the hospital, where attendees enjoyed an evening of upscale dining.

“It just was so great to have a mix of community supporters. We had local community leaders, we had the former Premier of Ontario David Peterson there and then our staff and physicians,” said Carruthers. 

“It's been such a rough two years of people being isolated and a real struggle for staff at the hospital to do everything they need to do, but to have the community there, showing their strong support for them was fantastic:”

Carruthers said the gala was made possible by many volunteers, including HHCF's gala chair of over 10 years, Jennifer Conroy,

“Her leadership is phenomenal and we couldn't have done it without her,”
he noted.