Between the 4th annual Cares for Kids Radiothon and the 3rd annual Father Daughter Ball, 104.7 2day FM has helped raise more than $40,000 for the Grande Prairie Regional Hospital Foundation in 2017. On top of the funds raised at the October 21st ball, the 12-hour radiothon at the Prairie Mall on December 7th led to the purchase of a Joey Baby Warming System.
“I just want to thank 2day FM staff for understanding four years ago that the new hospital was going to have a huge impact on our community and region,” says GPRHF Senior Development Officer Dawn Miller. “You guys saw the need and now host two great events that enable us to purchase equipment that changes the way we are able to provide healthcare to our pediatric patients.”
The Joey bed has a soft warm water mattress that is kept at 37 degrees Celsius, and make a baby feel like they’re next to their mother’s skin. They can also be a substitute for an incubator, and can help ease new parents.
The bed will be moved to the new hospital when it opens in 2019. Right now, an average of 2,000 babies are born in Grande Prairie every year, and Obstetrics in the GPRH will have space for the 2,150 annual births anticipated in the region by 2025.
In the past, the 2day FM Cares for Kids Radiothon has helped purchase four neonatal cribs, five vital monitoring systems, and a neonatal incubator. The station and its staff want to thank its radiothon sponsors and everyone who shared their story and donated.
“Each piece of equipment that we have been able to purchase through the radiothon has changed lives and improved the healthcare outcomes for the patients and families,” says Miller.
2day FM is part of Vista Radio, which raised more than $1.4 million during last week’s Vista Million Dollar Charity Drive. Since 2014, $5 million has been raised for local charities across the country.