Message from Charles Capute

“Miss Bartie, we must have a hospital in Easton.”  — Judge William R. Martin (source: 75 Years of Caring, by Dickson J. Preston)

Over 100 years ago, on a day in 1906, a local man by the name of Judge William R. Martin was having a conversation with a nurse, named Mary Bartlett Dixon and fondly known as “Bartie”, about the need for a hospital in Easton. That same day, he gave to her $3.50 as the “first contribution toward the new hospital” and declared that he wished her to serve as the treasurer of a group that would later raise thousandths of dollars to build a hospital. And so the story begins, as described in the book 75 Years of Caring, of an emergency hospital that would later be named The Memorial Hospital at Easton and then today’s University of Maryland Shore Medical Center at Easton.

Why is fundraising so important for our local hospital and health system?

If it weren’t for that initial spark to build a hospital and fueled by the generous community members who came together with their gifts of time, talent and treasure, our local hospital would not exist today. This is the core reason why fundraising is so important, and it is the reason I am proud to serve as Trustee and Chairman for the University of Maryland Memorial Hospital Foundation.

As the Eastern Shore’s leading health care organization, we are committed to our mission of creating healthier communities together and to our vision of being the region’s leader in patient-centered health care. But we cannot do it alone. The UM Memorial Hospital Foundation, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit charitable organization, relies on generous gifts that support our local hospital and funds its centers, programs and services that provide the care, therapies, and medical interventions—saving lives and improving the health and well-being of the people in our community.

As the fundraising arm of UM Shore Medical Center at Easton and its affiliated centers, the UM Memorial Hospital Foundation campaigns and raises funds needed to support the programs and services that many community members have come to rely on every day.  It is through generous financial and planned gifts that the Foundation is able to make our local hospital even better!  Here are some of the many outstanding centers, programs and services both supported and made possible by charitable donations:

• Magnet® nursing designation in 2009, and currently re-designated to our hospital in 2014-2018, an honor awarded to only 7 percent of U.S. hospitals!
• Primary Stroke Center at UM Shore Medical Center at Easton, designated by the Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems (MIEMSS).
• UM Shore Emergency Center at Queenstown, a 24/7 freestanding emergency center that serves more than 15,000 community members each year!
• Nationally accredited cancer and breast centers, including both the Shore Regional Cancer Center and the Comprehensive Breast Center.

Philanthropy has enabled the UM Shore Medical Center at Easton to provide comprehensive, compassionate care for over 100 years.  In order to continue to provide high-quality health services in the most caring, safe and cost-effective manner—and to remain adaptive to the ever-changing health care industry—we hope you will make us a priority in your charitable giving today and in the future. Your generosity results in state-of-the-art facilities, leading-edge technologies and enhancements that would not be possible without your support.

As Chairman of the UM Memorial Hospital Foundation Board of Trustees, I invite you to explore the UM Memorial Hospital Foundation website and to become more familiar with the many gift options of charitable giving. I also invite you to read our newsletter, Options, an estate and gift planning publication that includes our calendar of events, seminars and programs.

On behalf of the UM Memorial Hospital Foundation Board of Trustees and UM Shore Regional Health, I would like to thank you for your ongoing generosity and support.

Sincerely,

Charles T. Capute, Esq.
Chairman, Board of Trustees, UM Memorial Hospital Foundation
Board Member, UM Shore Regional Health