SANFORD HEALTH FOUNDATION2023 ANNUAL REPORT
Dear Friends,
As we often say, philanthropy makes progress possible. And because of you, progress is happening every day, for patients at every age and every stage of life, in every community we serve.
Thanks to your generosity, we’re powering new insights, driving breakthroughs and providing more patients and families with world-class, comprehensive care close to home.
Your generosity is making a difference for patients and families who are navigating some of life’s most challenging journeys — patients like Charleigh Ferguson in Hillsboro, North Dakota; Lindi Mrazek in Bemidji, Minnesota; and Melissa Weber in Canistota, South Dakota — each of whom you’ll read about in this report — as well as thousands of others who count on Sanford Health for life-saving, life-changing care.
Thank you for Giving for Good, for entrusting us with your philanthropic wishes, and for partnering with us as we put your generosity to work for the good of our patients and families, dedicated employees and the communities we serve.
With gratitude,
Deb Koski, Chief Philanthropy Officer
SANFORD HEALTHFOUNDATION IMPACT
Total raised: $15 million
Total donors: 17,100
As a nonprofit health care system, we know that philanthropy is the bridge between today’s success and tomorrow’s breakthroughs. Here, your generosity is at work in extraordinary ways in every community we serve — improving patient outcomes, ensuring staff remain on the leading-edge of care, and enabling us to move discoveries from the lab to the bedside faster than ever before.
Thanks to those who GIVE FOR GOOD, we continue to work toward our vision to improve the human condition for every one, at every stage of life, through exceptional care, spiritual enrichment, innovation and discovery.
PHILANTHROPY AT WORKACROSS ALL REGIONS
- We provided care to 1,506,536 patients.
- 95 principal investigators pioneered new breakthroughs by leading more than 400 research studies.
- 3,673 patients participated in clinical trials, accelerating new treatments, and new solutions.
- We trained the next generation of doctors, nurses and researchers by hosting more than 8,000 students in clinical, nursing and lab rotations, internships and more.
- We provided a place of belonging, faith and love for nearly 11,000 senior residents each day through the Good Samaritan Society.
GIVING TO MAKEA DIFFERENCE
Generosity helps us care for patients today, and fuels innovation and discovery to accelerate better treatments for tomorrow. 100% of every dollar raised through the Sanford Health Foundation directly supports our efforts to provide access to world-class health care across America’s heartland.
Over the last year, your kindness made a difference in countless ways. In our 2023 Annual Report, we celebrate how philanthropy is impacting care for children, cancer patients and those with behavioral health conditions throughout the communities we serve.
2023SANFORD CHILDREN’S IMPACT
Total raised: $5 million
Together, we raised $5 million for Sanford Children’s in 2023 — philanthropic support that fuels everything from staff education and support for families, to patient care services, to leading-edge technology like GlideScopes, life-saving video larygoscopy machine that allows us to better care for delicate NICU patients who require intubation.
PHILANTHROPY AT WORK
FOR CHILDRENS
- Your help powers vital services like Child Life, social work, music therapy and more — all of which are provided at no cost to families.
- Your generosity fuels leading-edge equipment like Giraffe OmniBeds for NICU patients and other life-saving technology such as pediatric ventilators, ultrasound machines, resuscitators and more.
- Your support helps us provide assistance for families to help with treatment-related costs not covered by insurance and supports ongoing education, ensuring our staff remain on the forefront of care.
GIVING FOR BRIGHTER FUTURES
Meet Charleigh
Every day, a local child’s life is changed forever by an injury or unexpected diagnosis. Thanks to you, kids like Charleigh and their families can turn to Sanford Children’s for world-class care, close to home.
After being placed into emergency foster care in 2018, Charleigh was admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit at Sanford Children’s Hospital in Fargo where doctors initially gave her less than 12 hours to live.
“For two months, the staff here at Children’s helped Charleigh get through everything. I can see her doing something that helps others, because the impact that Sanford Children’s had on her during that critical time in her life has carried through.”
—Jared Ferguson, Charleigh’s adoptive father
2023
CANCER’S IMPACT
Total raised: $5.7 million
Thanks to you, we’re fueling breakthroughs in research, we’re accelerating new treatment innovations through clinical trials, and we’re advancing important programming to help patients and families navigate some of life’s most challenging journeys.
PHILANTHROPY AT WORK
FOR CANCER
- Your help powers vital services like adult and pediatric nurse navigation, survivorship programming, healing arts and massage therapy — all of which are never billed to patients.
- Your generosity fuels leading-edge equipment like ultrasound machinery, bone marrow transplant technology, chemotherapy recliners and more.
- Your support helps us provide assistance for treatment-related costs not covered by insurance, complimentary wigs and head coverings for chemotherapy patients and more.
GIVING FOR HOPE
Meet Lindi
Your generosity supports education and training for staff, as well as life-saving equipment and leading-edge research so patients like Lindi Mrazek from Bemidji can enjoy life again.
Cancer has touched multiple members of the Mrazek family and for Lindi Mrazek and her daughter, Kaci Peterson, the journey has been difficult and complex.
“You may not have cancer, but you will know somebody in your lifetime that has it, and they will tell you how important the cancer center is here in Bemidji. We’ve got the best team here — emotionally, physically — they help with everything.”
—Lindi Mrazek, patient at Joe Lueken Cancer Center in Bemidji
2023 EDITH SANFORDBREAST INITIATIVE’S IMPACT
Total raised: $1.3 million
Patients rely on the Edith Sanford Breast Center for compassionate, personalized care, close to home. From prevention and screenings to diagnosis, treatment and wrap-around efforts like our Nurse Navigator program, we’re bringing health, hope and healing to those with breast cancer.
PHILANTHROPY AT WORK
FOR THE EDITH SANFORD BREAST INITAITVE
- Your help powers new insights and new breakthroughs in breast cancer research, provides support for clinical trial patient care costs not covered by insurance and more.
- Your generosity is improving access to life-saving screenings and fueling leading-edge equipment like 3D mammography machines, leading to faster and more accurate diagnoses for more women, no matter where they live.
- Your support ensures staff remain on the forefront of breast cancer care through advanced training, and helps us provide vital support services such as complimentary wigs and head coverings for chemotherapy patients, nurse navigation, survivorship programming and more.
GIVING FOR HEALING
Meet Melissa
Generosity fuels life-changing programs that offer breast cancer patients and their loved ones support and guidance as they navigate the journey to recovery — helping families like the Webers find hope in healing.
From her diagnosis through chemotherapy, radiation and surgery, the road to recovery was long and difficult, but support from the team at the Edith Sanford Breast Center made the journey easier.
“When I think about Kami, my nurse navigator, and everything she did for us, and knowing her position is made possible through philanthropy — it’s amazing.”
—Melissa Weber, Edith Sanford Breast Center patient, breast cancer survivor
2023BEHAVIORAL HEALTH
Total raised: $726,000
Together, we raised money to help address the growing behavioral health needs of our communities. Thanks to philanthropy, we’re training more behavioral health professionals for the workforce, and we’re advancing efforts to provide greater access to care. We’re also introducing new and innovative solutions like BeHEARD for Educators in North and South Dakota, an initiative fueled by support from First International Bank & Trust that provides teachers and educators with resources to help identify teens who may be struggling with behavioral health issues.
PHILANTHROPY AT WORK
FOR BEHAVIORAL HEALTH
- Your help is powering innovative partnerships to train tomorrow’s clinical psychologists, integrated health therapists, social workers, counselors and behavioral health technicians.
- Your generosity is helping to enhance care by integrating more behavioral health therapists into primary care clinics.
- Your support is fueling research and analysis to identify patients who may be at risk for adverse behavioral health outcomes, allowing us to develop proactive outreach and care strategies.
GIVING FOR A BETTER TOMORROW
Meet Tim & Dawn
Your support is helping to turn heartbreak into hope for thousands across our communities who are struggling with behavioral health conditions.
Tim and Dawn Bowman’s daughter, Rachel was just 13, in the early 2000s, when they first noticed changes in her weight and eating habits. It was the beginning of what would become a long, painful battle against a disease that is often misunderstood and rarely talked about.
“The one thing that will always, always stick in my head is that Rachel said Sanford accepted her the way she was. The approach they used with her was different. It made her feel at ease.”
—Dawn Bowman, Rachel’s mother
THANK YOUFOR YOUR SUPPORT
On behalf of all the people whose lives were touched by your gifts of health, healing and comfort in 2023, thank you for making our mission your mission. We look forward to doing more good, together, in the year ahead.
Download 2023 Report