Lehigh Valley Health Network – Pocono Foundation awarded more than $210,000 to community nonprofit organizations, local students pursuing health degrees and hospital service lines during the organization’s 29th Annual Grant and Scholarship award ceremony.

“Next to my wedding date, I have always considered this my second favorite day of the year,” said Elizabeth Wise, president of Lehigh Valley Hospital-Pocono. “This has been an exceptionally challenging year with the pandemic. But the generosity of so many in our community has allowed the LVHN–Pocono Foundation to provide scholarships for tomorrow’s health care professionals, much-needed resources to local nonprofit organizations that improve the quality of life in our region and equipment upgrades to our service lines resulting in better and safer care for our community.

Every year, the members of our selection committees continue to be inspired by what motivates our scholarship recipients to pursue careers in health care. Equally impressive is the amazing work our community grant recipients are doing with often limited funding - especially as demand for their services has grown since the start of the pandemic.”

Nonprofits

The 14 Monroe County community nonprofits that were honored through the generosity of the Dr. Alberta Finch Children’s Health Endowment Fund ($7,350) and the Dr. Claus G. Jordan Endowment Fund ($41,450) were as follows:

• American Red Cross

• Sights for Hope (formerly Center for Vision Loss) - Monroe County

• Developmental Education Services of Monroe County

• Family Promise of Monroe County

• Friendly Community Center

• Garden of Giving

• Monroe County Meals on Wheels

• Pleasant Valley Ecumenical Network

• Pocono Area Transitional Housing

• Pocono Family YMCA

• Pocono Services for Families & Children

• Salvation Army of East Stroudsburg

• Street-2-Feet Outreach Services

• Women’s Resources of Monroe County

Nursing scholarships

The R. Dale Hughes Nursing Scholarship Endowment, Jennie Cramer Memorial Nursing Scholarship, Robert A. Gordon Nursing Scholarship, Louise Scavone Nursing Scholarship, Dr. Elmo J. Lilli Healthcare Scholarship and the Sean P. Cunningham Memorial Scholarship combined for a total of $42,400.

The following area high school and college students received scholarships:

• Alexander Frage: Hughes Nursing Scholarship

• Jennifer Hess: Jennie Cramer Memorial Nursing Scholarship

• Kelsey Follweiler: Jennie Cramer Memorial Nursing Scholarship

• Jennifer Hess: Robert A. Gordon Nursing Scholarship

• Danielle Thompson: Louise Scavone Nursing Scholarship

• Santiago Churion: Dr. Elmo J. Lilli Memorial Healthcare Scholarship

• Matthew James: Sean P. Cunningham Memorial Scholarship

• Allison Novak: Sean P. Cunningham Memorial Scholarship (CRNP)

Other grants

The Lehigh Valley Hospital–Pocono EMS Heroes Fund awarded grants totaling $22,000 to the four respective EMS agencies serving LVH–Pocono: Bushkill Emergency Corps, Pocono Mountain Regional EMS, Suburban EMS and West End Community Ambulance Association.

The Valerie M. Hodge Memorial Pediatric Dental Center, which provides dental care for the uninsured and underinsured of Monroe County, has also raised a total of $36,971 through the Valerie M. Hodge Memorial Pediatric Dental Center Endowment.

Equipment grants were made to departments at LVH–Pocono through the William B. Cramer Medical Staff Equipment Endowment of $54,250 to enhance the medical services provided to the community within these service lines. This year, the endowment funded two RetinaVue scanners used to identify diabetic retinopathy and a state-of-the-art Heliox ventilator which can be utilized to treat our most critical respiratory patients.

The Pocono Health Foundation Endowment also provided $10,000 to the LVPG Family Practice and Pediatric services to fund the nationally recognized Reach Out & Read program at provider locations across the Pocono region.

In 2020, the COVID-19 Relief Fund raised money for programs that improved patient care during the pandemic. This year $25,000 was used to fund Air Scrubber units for the Intensive Care, Emergency Department and Operating Rooms. These units purify the air and help to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus among patients and the front-line heroes who treat them.