NEWS RELEASE
TIMMINS AND DISTRICT HOSPITAL FOUNDATION
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TIMMINS, ON – Executives from De Beers Group of Companies attended the Timmins Victor M. Power Airport on Monday to personally deliver the top prize for the Timmins and District Hospital Foundation’s 10th Annual Spring Lottery and a pair of diamonds to be auctioned off at the 19th Annual Spring Gala to be held The Senator Hotel on Saturday, May 6, 2017.
Delivering the Forevermark Black Label Diamonds – one 1.02 carat I VVSI Ideal Cushion (no fluorescence) valued at $12,500 and a pair of 0.34 G SI1 Ideal Square Cut valued at $4,000 – was James Kirby, general manager, De Beers Group of Companies Victor Mine. Accepting the beautiful gems on behalf of the Foundation were Sue McArthur and Line Levasseur, both members of the Spring Gala & Lottery committee; and Janna Burke, executive director, TADH Foundation.
“De Beers Canada is proud to once again participate in the Timmins and District Hospital Foundation Spring Gala by donating three Forevermark diamonds from our Victor Mine, Ontario’s first and only diamond mine, that will go to support the purchase of ophthalmic surgical equipment for the hospital,” stated James Kirby, general manager, De Beers Group of Companies - Victor Mine.
“Collaborating with partners is important to De Beers and we look forward to seeing this contribution help improve the quality of health care for residents of Timmins, northeastern Ontario and our partner communities along the James Bay coast,” added Kirby.
“This is the seventh year that De Beers Group of Companies donates a stunning diamond to the Foundation’s Spring Lottery from the Victor Mine located in northern Ontario,” stated Janna Burke, executive director, TADH Foundation. “This, along with the pair of diamonds to be auctioned off at our Spring Gala, brings the total cumulative value of De Beers’ generous contributions to more than $90,000 for which we are extremely grateful,” continued Burke.
The fundraising goal for the Foundation’s 19th Annual Spring Gala and 10th Annual Spring Lottery is to net $200,000 - including the $85,000 to be raised from the lottery. Funds raised will go toward the purchase of equipment needed to expand the Ophthalmic Surgical Program to accommodate Dr. Alejandro Oliver and TADH’s newest addition to the surgical team, Dr. Sohail Safi.
The demand for cataract surgery is increasing due to an aging population and TADH has been struggling to meet those demands with only one ophthalmologist. Dr. Oliver has gone from doing 500 surgeries per year to 707 surgeries and, in order to meet the demand, we need to be doing 1000 surgeries per year. TADH is now in a position to do just that with the addition of Dr Safi to the team. Now, we must purchase the additional equipment required to meet those targets and provide our community with the best eye care possible within reasonable wait times.
Only 200 of the coveted gold lottery tickets will be sold at $500 each. Tickets are available until Saturday, May 6th, 2017 and can be purchased through the Timmins and District Hospital Foundation office or from any of the following Spring Gala & Lottery committee members: Gord Cowie, Dianne Denault, Jason Gervais, Jessica Gervais, Line Levasseur, Sue McArthur and Mary Ellen Pauli; and Foundation volunteers: Frances Burke, Denise Millions, Mike Mason and Ryan Taylor.
For more information or to purchase tickets, please contact the TADH Foundation by calling 705-360-6039 or drop by the office at 700 Ross Avenue East in the main promenade of the Timmins and District Hospital.
From the James Bay coast to Engleheart, from Hearst to Kirkland Lake, Timmins and District Hospital is the beating heart of a vast, beautiful and vibrant region. We hold the well-being of over 115,000 people in our hands…and they, in turn, hold our fate in theirs.
As the largest hospital in Northeast Ontario, TADH is poised on the brink of a new era in healthcare for this region. To meet the growing and changing needs of the families we serve, the facilities and equipment of our hospital must be renewed. Not years from now, but now. Outdated, cramped, with an aging building and obsolete equipment, TADH is long past due for a revitalization that will enable us to take our District’s healthcare into the 21st century.
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