The Franklin Memorial Hospital Auxiliary officers were installed recently. From left are Joan Masterman, vice president; Shannon Smith, president; Lois Smith, secretary; Judy Farrington, treasurer; Betty Levesque, assistant treasurer; and Tom Hagerstrom, FMH director of human resources.

Hospital auxiliary funds garden

FARMINGTON – The Franklin Memorial Hospital Auxiliary held its annual dinner meeting in the hospital Bass Room on May 21.

Rick Batt, hospital president, accepted a donation of $23,000 from the auxiliary for the proposed healing garden, which will be located by the new medical arts building. The money was raised through the auxiliary-run gift shop at the hospital and other auxiliary fundraisers.

Before dinner, Jody Team, a representative of the Texas firm, Thompson and Associates, gave a presentation on “Charitable Estate and Financial Planning.”

Sandy Richards, head of Work in Progress, gave an update on the new mobile health van that will be on display at the medical arts open house from 5 to 7 p.m. Sunday, June 29. The auxiliary donated $25,000 in 2007 to help pay for the van.

The auxiliary announced that the next fundraiser will be the Home and Garden Tour in Farmington and Wilton from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. July 24. Contact Shannon Smith for tickets.

The fundraiser is solely for the purpose of raising money for the six scholarships given to area students who go on to higher education in the medical field.

This year six students were presented $500 scholarships. The auxiliary board decided to raise the scholarships to $800 beginning next year.

Dinner was prepared by the hospital cafeteria chefs. After dinner, Tom Hagerstrom, hospital director of human resources and hospital liaison to the auxiliary, installed the officers as follows: Shannon Smith, president; Joan Masterman, first vice president; Lois Smith, secretary; Judy Farrington, treasurer; Betty Levesque, assistant treasurer; Regina Ketcheson, second vice president (absent).

Smith, presented Trudy Dawson, outgoing president, with a plaque and gift card for her five years of service.

The auxiliary board meets at 1 p.m. the first Wednesday of each month at the hospital except for July and August.

New members are welcome, and Smith hopes to increase membership and public awareness of the auxiliary. To contact Smith, call 778-4726 or e-mail [email protected].