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They’re simply the best.
The Auxiliary at John T. Mather Memorial Hospital in Port Jefferson walked away from last week’s 51st Annual Institute for Healthcare Auxiliaries and Volunteer Leaders last week with the night’s Stanley Cup.
The local group received the Auxiliary of the Year Award in Large Hospital Category from the Healthcare Association of New York State for demonstrating “outstanding achievement and service within its healthcare facility and community,” it was announced Tuesday.
The Auxiliary of the Year Award was established to recognize the numerous ways that auxiliaries help strengthen New York State’s healthcare system, according to the organization.
The Mather Auxiliary was founded in 1949 to support the hospital’s fundraising efforts.
Since that time, it’s raised more than $6 million through the hospital thrift shop, gift shop, lobby sales and events such as the annual Thrift Shop Fashion Show.
The award noted the Auxiliary’s $210,000 donation to support the needs of the hospital’s Environmental, Engineering, and Nutritional Services departments, and its participation in the hospital’s Paint Port Pink breast cancer awareness community outreach, which this year had more than 100 community partners including local businesses, schools, library and theater, according to the announcement.
For Paint Port Pink, the Auxiliary distributes literature about breast health and pink lights to the local businesses along the main streets in Port Jefferson to display in October.
This year, the Auxiliary also staffed an advocacy table encouraging employees, volunteers, and visitors to the hospital to email lawmakers “about the harm that proposals to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act would cause for their community, including losing healthcare coverage,” reads the hospital’s announcement.
Top: Mather Auxiliary president Barbara Zinna with the Auxiliary of the Year Award. (John T. Mather Memorial Hospital courtesy photo)
ABOUT THEM:
The Auxiliary is a self-governing membership group that is directly accountable to the hospital administration. Auxiliary members may or not be service volunteers at Mather. The primary purpose of the Auxiliary is fundraising. The Auxiliary’s fundraising has supported many projects and equipment purchases at Mather over the years, most recently the renovation of the 2 South patient unit. The Auxiliary also contributed funds toward the construction of the Arthur & Linda Calace Foundation Pavilion and the purchase of a 320-slice CT scanner.
Prior Coverage:
Hitting the streets as Paint Port Pink winds down in Port Jeff
Port Jeff middle schoolers jump on ‘Paint Port Pink’ campaign for breast cancer
It’s a whole month of ‘pink’ in Port Jefferson with Mather Hospital
