Build It Forward and Alliance $1,000 for Spiritual Care Fund

Submitted by EKFH on 04-10-2013 Cranbrook, BC…  It just wasn’t the wonders of hearing the amazing songs of country music star Paul Brandt when he played a concert last May at the Cranbrook Alliance Church but it is the wonder of his generosity that is now touching the community.   The Calgary born Brandt decided to thank the Cranbrook Alliance Church for hosting the concert by sending a gift of $1,000 from The Build It Forward Foundation, formed by Paul and his wife Elizabeth Peterson, to the East Kootenay Foundation for Health.    “We were absolutely blessed to learn of this wonderful gift coming from Paul and his foundation. We were also equally moved when it was the foundation who suggested that the gift be earmarked for use by the regional hospital’s Spiritual Care Committee. This is something we think Paul (a former pediatric nurse) and his family will really be pleased with,” explains Steve Pommier, representative for the Alliance Church.   The East Kootenay Regional Hospital Spiritual Care Program operates 52 weeks per year with chaplains available Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoons.   The program complements the job done by the hospital’s many dedicated and skilled staff to meet the patients’ physical needs by adding spiritual care to the equation.    Laird Siemens, EKRH Chaplain shares, “The Spiritual Care Program is donor-driven – all donations come from the community, so a donation like this is very welcome indeed. Like manna from heaven!”   The East Kootenay Foundation for Health assists the Spiritual Care Program by stewardship of its donations and working closely with the Program’s Committee on a variety of different projects.

 L-R: Accepting funds from The Build It Forward Foundation are: Mike Calder (EKFH Treasurer), Steve Pommier (Cranbrook Alliance Church), Christine Shumka (Interior Health Services Director) and Laird Siemens (Chaplain EKRH Spiritual Care Program).