The North Georgia Heart Foundation announced today it has signed a Letter of Intent to pursue integrating its financial operations with The Medical Center Foundation, the fundraising arm of Northeast Georgia Health System.
“We are excited about the possibility to join forces with The Medical Center Foundation,” says Carroll Turner, Ph.D., Board Chair for the North Georgia Heart Foundation. “Both groups have similar goals of improving the cardiovascular health and quality of life for citizens of North Georgia, and together, we can accomplish these goals faster and more efficiently.”
The North Georgia Heart Foundation was formed in late 2012 with a mission to eradicate cardiovascular disease through locally based research and education. Interventional Cardiologist Jeffrey Marshall, MD, brought together a group of like-minded community leaders to form the foundation. Its work focused on providing local access to cutting-edge, cardiovascular research and enhancing collaboration among students, schools and medical professionals to decrease the incidence of cardiovascular disease through community education.
“The North Georgia Heart Foundation has been fortunate to have a board with strong local leadership,” says Dr. Marshall. “NGHF has always worked in partnership with The Medical Center Foundation, and now, we are looking to join together and have an even stronger impact on the health of our community.”
“For decades, we have been focused on raising money to support cardiovascular care at Northeast Georgia Medical Center, Georgia’s number one heart hospital for 12 years and counting,” says Nancy Colston, President and Chief Development Officer of The Medical Center Foundation. “From initiatives such as the Ronnie Green Heart Center and W.D. Stribling Heart Clinic to the Woody Stewart Heart Failure Treatment Unit and programs to equip our region’s ambulances with cutting edge cardiac technology, donors to The Medical Center Foundation have made an indelible mark on cardiac care in Northeast Georgia. We are thrilled to now make that work even stronger by exploring an integration with the North Georgia Heart Foundation.”
Colston says The Medical Center Foundation’s Board expects to form a new cardiac committee dedicated to fundraising for heart and vascular projects and expects many of the current North Georgia Heart Foundation board members to serve on this new committee.
“This new planned committee would be a welcome addition to our board,” says LeTrell Simpson, Chair of The Medical Center Foundation Board. “Our board is already committed to supporting the nationally recognized heart and vascular services at NGMC, and formalizing this focus would only strengthen that support. We are excited about what this new possibility could mean for our community!”
For more information about The Medical Center Foundation, visit www.themedicalcenterfoundation.org.