A local fundraising bike ride gave the Chatham-Kent Health Alliance the "final push" it needed to surpass its campaign goal.
CKHA’s Diagnostic Imaging Equipment Renewal Campaign event at The Kent in Chatham. May 28, 2018. (Photo by Sarah Cowan Blackburn News Chatham-Kent.
The Foundation of Chatham-Kent Health Alliance (CKHA) announced Monday evening that it has reached and surpassed its fundraising goal of $6.9-million for its Diagnostic Imaging Equipment Renewal Campaign, which is now complete. According to the organization, the campaign raised a total of $7,062,761.
The announcement was made at an event held at The Kent in Chatham. The organization also shared that the "Final Push" bicycle ride, which wrapped up on Monday in Chatham, raised $100,626 towards the campaign's goal.
Foundation of CKHA Executive Director Mary Lou Crowley says it's unbelievable that the foundation actually surpassed its fundraising goal. She says the money will go towards much needed medical equipment.
"The 15 pieces of equipment -- the bone density, the mammography machine, and the ultrasounds -- have all been installed and are now working," explains Crowley. "Right now these last dollars will be going towards purchasing a new CT scan machine"
A computed tomography scan machine can be used to help diagnose numerous health issues, including cancer, heart disease, and blood clots.
Mary Lou Crowley at CKHA’s Diagnostic Imaging Equipment Renewal Campaign event at The Kent in Chatham. May 28, 2018. (Photo by Sarah Cowan Blackburn News Chatham-Kent.
Crowley says she is delighted to see Chatham get the new equipment.
"It's going to have earlier signs and diagnoses for our radiologists and physicians. We're going to have quicker and more in-depth scans," she says. "We're going to have a machine here that's working for us 24/7."
Dave Depencier, the co-chair of the CKHA's Diagnostic Imaging Equipment Renewal Campaign, began the 1,000 km bike ride with his friend Dan Van Moorsel at CKHA's Wallaceburg site on Wednesday, May 23.
"The ride was absolutely amazing," he says. "It was a lot of work... but I'm so excited to do this as a community and put it all together. We did it. We raised the money that we needed and that's really what it's all about."
Depencier says he's blown away by how much money was raised by the ride and how much the campaign raised in total. He holds the cause dear to his heart after experiencing his own health complications.
"I had a pulmonary embolism, which is a blood clot in my arteries going to my lungs, and that happened during me being one of the co-chairs," he explains. "I was laying there hearing the stories about the hospital and hearing the CT scanners breaking down, thinking to myself 'You know what? I got to do something, I got to try to make a difference.'"
CKHA’s Diagnostic Imaging Equipment Renewal Campaign event at The Kent in Chatham. May 28, 2018. (Photo by Sarah Cowan Blackburn News Chatham-Kent.