October 7, 2022 – Sarasota
Eliza and Hugh Culverhouse stepped forward quickly to jump start the SMH Employees Hurricane Relief Fund with their $250,000 gift. Their hope is to inspire others to support the dedicated staff at Sarasota Memorial (SMH) who went to work, 24/7 to care for our community during this disaster.
The Healthcare Foundation established the fund to help ease the financial burden facing SMH employees impacted by Hurricane Ian. Of the health system’s 8000+ employees, nearly 25% live in the most hard-hit areas of south Sarasota County and the surrounding region.
“Learning that over 2,000 staff members, nurses and physicians left their families and homes behind to care for the community was heartbreaking,” Mrs. Culverhouse said. “The fact that many of them went home to nothing or faced unfathomable financial hardship was almost incomprehensible–we had to help.”
“The time is now,” Mr. Culverhouse added. “The people who care for the suffering are now suffering–we can’t walk away from that. We all need to find our compassion and show these courageous people our gratitude for what they have done, and sacrificed, to care for us.”
“The Culverhouses have stepped forward once again to support SMH through a crisis. We are so grateful for this generous and compassionate gift,” said Healthcare Foundation President Stacey Corley. “We put our lives in the hands of the Sarasota Memorial staff and I can’t think of a better time or a better way to say thank you than with a gift like this from the Culverhouses.”
The Healthcare Foundation is also extremely grateful for a $200,000 grant just received from Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation. “Getting SMH employees help and getting them back to normal is one of the most important things we can do right now,” said Barancik Foundation president/CEO Teri A Hansen.
A donation to the Sarasota Memorial Healthcare Foundation SMH Employee Hurricane Relief Fund can be made on our website, smhf.org/ian, or by calling 941.917.1286
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