25th Annual Health Care Foundation Dinner and Auction

The 25th Annual Phillips County Healthcare Foundation Dinner and Auction is this Saturday, November 12, and board member Julie Snellman hopes this year’s theme – entitled Black Tie and Blue Jeans – will encourage people to get dressed to the nines.

“Since this is the 25th Anniversary we are encouraging people to dress up if they want,” Snellman said. “Wear a black tie, or come in your blue jeans. We thought we would have a theme and I know a few men already have their sports coats dusted off.”

Since its inception in 1991, the Foundation Dinner and Auction has raised nearly $1 million going towards paying for a number of much needed medical equipment for both the Phillips County Hospital and the Hi-Line Retirement Center (see a list at the bottom of this story.)

“The foundation has given back over $900,000 to healthcare in Phillips County over the last 25 years,” Snellman said. “The public always shows up to the event and local businesses are always willing to donate. It is really great.”

The main purchase the foundation will be looking to raise money for this year will be an ER Handheld Ultrasound and if more money remains after that, the purchase of a new blanket warmer for the ER is on the wish list.

The event will once again be held at Malta City Hall with a No Host Happy Hour starting at 5 p.m., dinner is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. and the rest of the night will include the live and silent auctions, door prize giveaways and raffles.

PC Healthcare Foundation Board Chair Greg Ziegler said that this year’s raffle prizes are a Weatherby Vanguard 6.5 Creedmore with Vortex Scope, a Honda 2,000 watt generator, a Traeger Pro Series 22 Grill, a Yeti 65 Cooler with beef bundle and $500 in Dino Dollars. The Health-Care Foundation is currently accepting the donations of items to be auctioned off – once again by auctioneer Cliff Rustad -- and will continue to accept items up until the night of the event at Malta City Hall.

This year’s events will include the Wheelchair Races (which were brought back last year and were a tremendous success) and new this year will be the Photo booth for people to take fun pictures with props and will be hosted by the HLRC for donations. The event will once again be catered by Liz Brown – owner of Cookwagon Catering – for a sit-down dinner.

Tickets for the dinner are available at all three Malta Banks and the Phillips County Clinic and are $25 per person. Raffle tickets are still available – items to be raffled are a four-wheeler, $2,500 in Dino Bucks and two kayaks -- which are $20 each or six for $100. The event will also feature door prizes for attendees.

The foundation is also selling tables for the event which cost $350 and include dinner tickets for 10 people, two bottles of wine and your logo or business advertised at your table. The event starts at 5 p.m. no host happy hour and dinner at 6 p.m.

For more information on the event or questions about auction donations, you are encouraged to contact Snellman at Art’s Furniture in Malta or by calling her at 654-2251.

List of equipment purchased through the annual Fund Raiser Dinner/Auction

1992– Heart Monitoring Equipment and Cardiac Stress Treadmill. 1993– Gastroscopy & Colonoscopy Equipment. 1994 – Chemistry Analyzer. 1995 & 1996 – X-Ray Machine. 1997– Hematology Analyzer, Defibrillator & ER Gurney. 1998 – New Hospital Beds & Naso-Pharyngeal-Laryngoscope. 1999 – New ER Lights for hospital and clinic. 2000– Chemotherapy Pharmacy Hood. 2001– Portable X-Ray Machine. 2002– 2 Diagnostic Scopes. 2003 – Chemistry Analyzer. 2004 – ER Ultrasound, Anesthesia Machine. 2005 – Hematology Analyzer, Defibrillator, AED, WanderGuard, Remodel Assisted Living Rooms. 2006 – Colonoscope, Gastroscope and Video Equipment, Chairs for Hi-Line Retirement Center dining room and CR/PACS hospital contribution. 2007 – 2 EKG machines (1 for the clinic and 1 for the ER/floor), vascular head for the ER ultrasound, slit lamp and laundry marking system for Hi-Line Retirement Center. 2008– Cardiac Telemetry unit. 2009– Glidescope. 2011 - Steris system for our endoscopy. 2012 - PCH beds/HLRC hot water heater replacement ($5,000/$20,000). 2014- Blood gas analyzer ($6000). 2015- donation to HLRC cause.