(PHOTO:  Pictured are Follett Foundation Trustees James I. Dunne, Peter V. Smith and Thomas C. Emerson, with Patricia Follett Savicki, representing the Follett family.)

UHS Chenango Memorial Hospital is half a million dollars closer to its capital campaign goal thanks to a generous commitment from the Roger Follett Foundation.

“When we give Roger’s gifts, we try to help as many people as we can. He was very fond of the hospital, and I believe he would be very proud to know he is supporting this important investment in the community,” said Patricia Follett Savicki, who sits on the board of trustees of the foundation formed by her late cousin, Roger Follett.

The New Hartford resident traveled to Norwich for the ceremonial check presentation where the $500,000 commitment was announced. The gift, to be paid over the next five years, is one of the largest announced since the hospital kicked off the capital campaign in August.

“We are incredibly grateful to the trustees of the Roger Follett Foundation for their commitment to this project. It means a great deal to know that Mr. Follett held the hospital in such high regard during his life. This project is one more way in which his legacy will live on here in Chenango County,” said Dr. Drake Lamen, President and CEO/CMO of UHS Chenango Memorial.

Savicki described Follett as a down to earth farmer, who cared deeply about the Norwich community.

“He was never extravagant with himself and was very careful with his own money,” she said. “But he was a very giving person in his own way. In the end, he made sure his community was taken care of through the foundation.”

According to Lamen, the Follett commitment will enable Chenango Memorial to more fully leverage state funding and the hospital’s own resources to build a new Emergency Room and Walk-In Center, as well as make strategic investments in Diagnostic Imaging and infrastructure to support the growth of future services at the Norwich hospital.

“This work is part of the first phase of our Chenango Medical Neighborhood Plan, which represents an investment of more than $20 Million in our facility,” he said.

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