giving for good bemidji

For patients at the Sanford Joe Lueken Cancer Center, the Sanford Bemidji Medical Center and beyond, your generosity makes all the difference. Together, we’re powering new insights, driving breakthroughs and providing patients and families with world-class, comprehensive care close to home in the Bemidji region. We’re saving more lives thanks to the addition of the new PET/CT digital imaging system at the Sanford Joe Lueken Cancer Center and the region’s first Mobile Mammography Unit.

Last year, we put over $2.2 million in philanthropic gifts to work across the Bemidji region. Read more in the 2025 annual report.

Give for the Bemidji Region

Local Priorities

Philanthropy is an integral part of the care provided at Sanford Health. The Sanford Health Foundation in the Bemidji region plays a crucial role in supporting specific programming for patients and staff, upgrading essential equipment, and funding special projects tailored to meet the needs of our communities.

Child Life

Join our efforts to help make unplanned pediatric healthcare journeys easier for local families through the region’s new child life program. These services provide necessary emotional support, reduce stress, improve outcomes and help kids get better, faster.

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Cancer

More than 3,000 of our neighbors across the region turn to the Sanford Joe Lueken Cancer Center every year. Donors support costs of lifesaving MRIs, services like nurse navigation at no cost to patients, complimentary wigs and head coverings, advanced technologies for cancer prevention, detection and treatment, staff education, and so much more.

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Behavioral Health

In the last 10 years, the Sanford Bemidji Mobile Crisis Transportation saw a 316% increase among adults needing psychiatric crisis services and a 338% increase among children. Philanthropy supports psychiatric services at the Sanford Bemidji Crisis Center, scholarship and internship opportunities for local students in behavioral health fields, community and school-based programming to expand mental health screening and access, and so much more.

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Leadership Connection

A region update from Dr. Jason Caron, president & CEO of Sanford Bemidji.
August 2026

Every year, we are humbled by the generosity of thousands of local donors who support our mission with gifts of cash, donations of appreciated stock or commodities, grants from donor advised funds and more. As the region’s largest nonprofit healthcare system, I can’t overstate the important role these gifts play in fueling our work every day, from supporting lifesaving equipment and technology to advancing research and innovation to powering vital programs and services patients rely on. But today, I’d like to reflect on the significance of a different kind of gift: one we may not receive for years, or even decades. A planned gift is more than a financial commitment. It’s an expression of love for future generations. When a donor chooses to include Sanford Health in their will or estate plan, they’re doing more than investing in the healthcare of tomorrow, they are ensuring that future patients and families across our region will have access to the world-class care they need, close to home.

What makes a planned gift especially powerful is the vision behind it. A planned gift is an expression of trust, purpose and a desire to make a lasting difference. As we observe National Make a Will Month, I can’t say thank you enough to the many local donors who have included Sanford Bemidji in their wills or estate plans. Please join me in celebrating their visionary generosity and in recognizing the impact their legacies will have on the future of healthcare for our region.

Dr. Jason Caron

Bemidji’s Signature Events

Below are a few of the signature events we host in the Bemidji region. To see more events in Bemidji, visit our calendar.

Pours for a PurposeLearn More

PETALLearn More

Other Bemidji EventsLearn More

Get Involved through Fundraising

At Sanford Health, our doctors, researchers and caregivers are working to bring health, hope and healing to more than 1.2 million people across the Upper Midwest. With you on our team, we can accelerate our race to uncover new breakthroughs, develop new treatments and create meaningful programs that support patients and their families.

Launch your fundraiser in the Bemidji region and inspire others to give for good today!

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