Spring 2014
George’s story—big joy arrives in a tiny package Born weighing only 4 pounds, 6 ounces and 18.5 inches long, he was the size of a little butternut squash, his mom says. Thankfully, the Ridgeview nursing staff was able to swoop George into Ridgeview Medical Center’s Neonatal Care Unit (NCU) for the specialized monitoring and care a fragile preemie like him needed. Dr. Amy Meath, Lakeview Clinic, Ltd. said the Krienke family represents how valuable the NCU is to Ridgeview. Instead of transferring downtown for the expertise and hassle that comes with it, Ridgeview’s NCU can care for babies as early as 32 weeks—and keep families close to home. The Krienkes, from Carver, were able to do just that, but the road to get there wasn’t easy. Alexis and her husband, Jeremy, planned to start a family right away. After trying unsuccessfully, they turned to in vitro fertilization.Unfortunately, Alexis had a rare reaction to the injectable hormone medication and developed ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome. Her ovaries became swollen and painful. Meet baby George, “the golden boy,” his family calls him. He was one of 24 eggs and the only one destined to be a Krienke. “We only had one shot,” his mom, Alexis, says. “He was so determined and strong to be that one—he was meant to be here.” When news of the “golden egg” came, the window of opportunity was short. Alexis made it through, and the Krienkes became pregnant 10 days later. Amidst their joy, more challenge followed. Alexis developed a subchorionic hemorrhage and gestational diabetes. She went on bed rest for months and couldn’t move or, sadly, she says, eat what she loved. “I felt so bad for her,” Jeremy says. “It was a long road that most pregnant women thankfully don’t have to experience.”
The road to Ridgeview … in the nick of time Speaking of long roads, who knew Jeremy would need to unexpectedly trek from his South Dakota hunting trip to Ridgeview Medical Center for George’s birth— two months before George’s due date. Alexis frantically called and said, “You’d better hurry!” Worry hit: a premature baby, the unknowns that come with it and would Jeremy make it home for his son’s arrival? In the nick of time he did. “I didn’t even get to enjoy the luxurious birthing rooms at Ridgeview,” Jeremy kids. “But we were so happy we heard George cry the second he came out.”
The NCU became the Krienkes’ second home for five weeks. They stayed nights at home but days at Ridgeview, learning and preparing for George’s fragile transfer home. Alexis and Jeremy expressed how hard it is to live outside the hospital when your baby is in the hospital—the reason they appreciated Ridgeview’s CribNotes, personalized email updates on George and his progress.
Knowledge and expertise make all the difference “Our nurses, Kim and Celia and Sharon, were amazing and so was our lactation specialist, Julie,” Alexis says. “Their expertise and knowledge, not to mention the benefit of having the NCU in our own backyard, meant everything.” Before George left the NCU, nurse Sharon came to say good-bye on her day off. “Such a Ridgeview touch,” the Krienkes say. It was a happy good-bye for all. George is now busting through clothes and doing phenomenally well while his family anxiously awaits the “golden boy’s” first birthday. After all, there’s so much to celebrate. Developed and operated in collaboration with Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota, Ridgeview Medical Center’s Neonatal Care Unit cares for the most fragile of infants. For more information, visit www.ridgeviewmedical.org or call 952-442-2191.
Board of Directors Nancy Bach, Wayzata Brian Beniek, Mound Jean Buller, Chair, Chaska Dermot Cowley, Secretary, Watertown
Dear Friends,
In 2014 we celebrate the 36th year of Ridgeview Foundation. Since 1978, the Foundation has made an indelible impact by helping Ridgeview Medical Center deliver on its mission to make a positive difference in the quality of life and health for the people of our area.
Stacy Desai, Eden Prairie Tim Foster, Wayzata Fred Green, Edina Darla Holmgren, Finance Chair, Waconia Greg Kummer, Norwood Young America Jim Leonard, Chaska Brian Mark, Excelsior
Throughout the decades, Ridgeview Foundation has provided funding for several priorities of Ridgeview Medical Center. Some of those projects included the expansion of cardiac services, the building of the auditorium, and the creation of a Center for Women & Children. Fundraising helped build the Marie Steiner Kelting Hospice Home in Chaska, a state-of-the-art heart center and helped fund a major renovation of the original 1963 medical/surgical wing on the second floor of the medical center in Waconia.
Rick Polk, Excelsior Linda Roebke, Waconia
Philanthropic support has done so much for Ridgeview. And we hope to do more.
Daniel Ross, DDS, Chaska Lorene Rutherford, MD, Plymouth Charles Spevacek,Vice Chair, Shorewood Mark Steingas, Excelsior Carla Struble, Chaska Paul Whittaker, Waconia
Last fall we announced what could be the most important fundraising priority to date when we launched the Every Moment Counts endowment campaign. With this initiative, we hope to raise endowment funds and capital gifts to help secure Ridgeview’s future. Through this campaign, we can ensure that patients fighting ailments and diseases like cancer, heart disease, diabetes and lung diseases will get the care they need close to home, always.
Larry Wilhelm, Excelsior David Windschitl, Chanhassen Steve Youngstedt, Deephaven
Ex-Officio Robert Stevens, President and CEO, Ridgeview Medical Center Doug Stasek,
We are excited to have you as a partner in this effort. And we are grateful for the vision and dedication of our former Foundation volunteer leaders and all of the donors who have helped make Ridgeview such an incredible place. Our 40-year anniversary as a foundation is fast approaching and, when that day comes, we hope to be well on our way to securing Ridgeview’s future for the next 40 years and beyond. But we need your help. We hope you will continue to be incredible advocates for and supporters of Ridgeview. Our volunteers, donors and friends will help build our endowment and help keep high-quality health care right in our own backyard.
Executive Director, Ridgeview Foundation
©2014 Ridgeview Medical Center If you would like to stop receiving Ridgeview Foundation printed material, please send an email, including your name and address, to foundation@ridgeviewmedical.org or call 952-442-6010.
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Thank you for your continued support. I look forward to working together to help secure Ridgeview’s future.
Jean M. Buller, Chair, Foundation Board
Save the dates!
Ridgeview Foundation recognizes donors at annual dinner Founder’s Society and Legacy Society members were invited to a special “Evening by the Lake” at BayView Event Center in Excelsior to hear the results of their philanthropic support. Chris and Rachel Flores shared their Ridgeview experience and expressed their gratitude to Ridgeview staff and local first responders for saving their daughter Morel’s life. Because of generous donors, Ridgeview is able to change lives and save lives every day. Thank you!
Ridgeview awarded Hope Chest grant For the fifth year in a row, Ridgeview Medical Center has been awarded a grant from the Hope Chest for Breast Cancer® Foundation. This year we received $15,000, an increase from the last four years, and we have the opportunity for an additional $5,000 in matching funds. The Hope Chest for Breast Cancer Emergency Assistance Fund was established to provide emergency financial assistance to women facing financial challenges during treatment for breast cancer at Ridgeview Medical Center. A patient’s journey with breast cancer is difficult, not just from the disease, but from life itself. For breast cancer patients, the financial and emotional hardship affects the entire family. Many times, a twoincome household becomes one, making daily living expenses a burden. In 2013, Ridgeview’s Hope Chest for Breast Cancer Emergency Assistance Fund provided more than $30,000 in support to 33 women by assisting them with rent, mortgage payments, utilities, transportation and other necessary living expenses.
“As the parents of four children, it is important to my husband and me to remain as current as possible on our ‘basic’ living expenses. During this time of mounting medical bills, we want to keep our family life as stable as possible. Thank you, Hope Chest, for helping us be able to do that.” —Ridgeview Medical Center breast cancer patient and Hope Chest recipient For information on how to apply for assistance, please contact the Breast Care Nurse at 952-442-2191, ext. 5673, or Ridgeview Social Services at 952-442-2191, ext. 6194. For inquiries about how you can support the Hope Chest for Breast Cancer Emergency Assistance Fund at Ridgeview Foundation, please contact the Foundation office at 952-442-6010. Explore the Hope Chest for Breast Cancer website to donate your time, talents, merchandise or funds and to find out more about upcoming events and what’s new at Hope Chests’ retail stores.
CONNECTING WITH COMMUNITY 3
Donating life insurance is easier than you think Life insurance is an asset you may not think of donating to Ridgeview Foundation until you hear how powerful, practical and simple it can be. Most of us think of life insurance as protection, especially for our loved ones. But it is also a powerful tool you can use to champion Ridgeview’s work far into the future. Here’s what you need to know. When you own a life insurance policy with accumulated cash value, you’re essentially sitting on a pile of money. When the original purpose for the protection no longer applies—such as to educate children now grown or to provide financial security for a spouse now deceased—your life insurance can be redirected to help support a worthwhile cause. One option is simply to name Ridgeview Foundation as the primary beneficiary. (Naming us as beneficiary while you retain ownership of the policy, however, does not qualify you for an income tax deduction.) Or, you can name us as the beneficiary and also assign us ownership of the policy as a current charitable gift. Doing so provides you tax benefits as outlined below. When you assign Ridgeview Foundation ownership of a life insurance policy and also name us as the beneficiary, the following good things happen:
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You receive an income tax charitable deduction, available under most circumstances. You realize tax savings from use of the deduction, and these savings can be invested for future income. You reduce your future estate tax liability.
If you are concerned that supporting Ridgeview will reduce your family’s inheritance, a new life insurance policy equal to your charitable gift can replace the value of your loved ones’ inheritance. Perhaps you don’t own an existing policy but still realize how beneficial giving life insurance can be. If so, you can—in most states—purchase a new insurance policy and name a qualified charity like Ridgeview Foundation as the beneficiary and owner of the policy. Rather than paying premiums to the insurance company, you make tax-deductible cash gifts to cover the annual premiums. Even greater leverage is possible when two donors, usually spouses, purchase a two-life second-to-die policy. With two lifetimes before the payment of death benefits, a future gift to us will cost you even less. Download a free guide to learn more about the benefits of giving life insurance. Or contact Kent Spaulding, Director, at 952-442-8061 or kent.spaulding@ridgeviewmedical.org for answers to any questions you have about this way to support Ridgeview Foundation’s work.
Two Twelve Medical Center ribbon cutting A ribbon cutting was held April 15 to celebrate the opening of the new 73,000-square-foot addition to Two Twelve Medical Center. The threestory addition is located to the north of the original building, which opened in 2011. Officials at the Two Twelve Medical Center ribbon cutting included Chaska City Administrator Matt Podhradsky, Scott Hughes, Ed Farr, Luigi Bernardi, Kris Hahn, Tim Schmidt, Curtis Sell, Ridgeview President and CEO Robert Stevens, Chaska Mayor Mark Windschitl, Taylor Stephens, Todd Archbold, Steven Michals, John Prondzinski and Michael Phelps. Two Twelve Medical Center, owned and operated by Ridgeview Medical Center, is located at 111 Hundertmark Road, at the northeast corner of Highways 41 and 212.
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Save the date: Annual Golf & Taste Celebration set for June 23
Dr. Hamza returns to Ridgeview Clinics
As Ridgeview Foundation’s largest fundraiser, the 29th Annual Golf & Taste event brings more than 1,000 people together to raise funds for Ridgeview Medical Center. Volunteers, golfers, bridge and Bunco players, staff and guests join for a common purpose: to help transform health care. Proceeds from this year’s event will support the Every Moment Counts endowment campaign.
Haizal (Nina) Hamza, MD, recently returned to Ridgeview Chanhassen Clinic as an internal medicine doctor. She sees adult patients for annual exams, illness care, and the diagnosis and treatment of chronic medical problems. Dr. Hamza works with patients to “find that balance in taking care of your health while still living your life.”
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ANNUAL
GOLF & TASTE CELEBRATION
Sign up to play bridge or Bunco, attend the Taste of the Ridgeview Region and enjoy live music by Traveled Ground, great food prepared by area restaurants and beverage establishments, a full buffet dinner, a raffle, and both live and silent auctions. New in 2014, Ridgeview Foundation is excited to announce the addition of mobile and online bidding at the auction! Watch for more information to come on this new auction enhancement.
“I’m most interested in maintaining my patients’ quality of life through their different stages of health and life,” she said. “I like working together with the patient to help make treatment decisions that are comfortable for both of us.” View Dr. Hamza’s profile or schedule an appointment by calling 952-934-0570.
For more information on how to get involved, please visit our website or call Ridgeview Foundation at 952-442-6010.
Classes, events and ways to get involved Advance Care Planning . . . It’s About the Conversation It is important for people to have accurate information in order to make informed decisions about treatments they would or would not want for end-of-life care. Then it is important to talk about one’s wishes with the family members who may need to make health care decisions, and to record wishes in a document. Ridgeview Medical Center offers a free service to help people understand this process. Please join us for an information session that will explain why advance care planning is important and the steps involved. You will also have an opportunity to sign up for free assistance with this process.
Celebration of Life – Cancer Survivors’ Night Thursday, June 26, 6–7:30 p.m. Ridgeview Medical Center Ridgeview Community Auditorium 500 S. Maple Street, Waconia Cancer survivors, their families and friends are invited to attend and celebrate with others who have been on similar journeys. For more details and speaker information, or to register, visit our website at www.ridgeviewmedical.org/events or call 952-442-8083.
Saturday, June 7, 9:30 a.m. Ridgeview Medical Center, 500 S. Maple Street, Waconia To register, visit www.ridgeviewmedical.org/events or call 952-442-2191, ext. 5575. 490 S. Maple Street, Suite 110 • Waconia, MN 55387 www.ridgeviewfoundation.org • 952-442-6010
