UCH Friends and Partners

Meet Mr. and Mrs. Robert Whitfield, long time supporters of UCH
In 1988 my wife Jeri and I moved to Lutz. During the coming years we both had medical conditions that required hospital admission. Most of our doctors were on staff at University Community Hospital. We were very impressed and grateful for the care that our physicians and the hospital provided. My wife and I had been long time supporters to the West Point Fund and found that our small donations were put to good use. We decided we wanted to also support the hospital we were so grateful for. In 1997, we initiated a small annual donation to the Foundation honoring Dr. Henry Hyatt, my wife’s gynecologist, and designated the gift be used to purchase books for the Women’s Center library which is accessed by hundreds of patients and visitors.

We began to attend the Starlight Ball annually. In 2001 the Women’s Center was chosen to benefit from the proceeds of the event. At that time we had stock we had held for years and could not afford to sell because of the capital gains tax so we gave it to the Foundation. We obtained a tax write-off, started receiving quarterly checks from UCH Foundation and had the privilege of naming the new nurses’ lounge where we also honored Dr. Hyatt.

At the same time, we decided to modify our trusts so my trust would provide for our family and my wife’s would go to two charitable beneficiaries, of which UCH is one.

When my wife died in 2004, I decided to leave a further legacy in her name and created the Jerol M. Whitfield Memorial Scholarships for nurses at UCH.

As you can see, there are numerous ways to support the hospital and help heal and save lives. Creating a legacy is not important to us; inspiring others to do so is.

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