St. John’s Episcopal Hospital’s ICARE Foundation will honor community members and hospital doctors for their lifelong service at its second annual Blue Phoenix Gala on June 5, while raising funds for the hospital’s new labor, delivery, recovery and postpartum unit.
The ICARE Foundation hosted the first gala last year to collaborate with community members and raise funds for programs and renovations that benefit Far Rockaway residents. More than 300 people attended, and the foundation raised $345,000 for philanthropic projects and hospital renovations.
This year, all proceeds from donations, sponsorships and ticket sales will support St. John’s new state-of-the-art labor, delivery, recovery and postpartum unit, which is set to open in late summer.
Updating a decades old unit, the new area will have six delivery rooms, each about 400 square feet. There will be two advanced cesarean operating rooms, two recovery rooms and four triage rooms.
Nancy Leghart, the foundation’s executive director, said the unit is crucial in order for Far Rockaway residents and people from surrounding communities to have access to proper maternal care.
“It really addresses health equity, reducing disparities, and promotes fairness in maternal care, which is really a hospital priority,” Leghart said. “This is going to ensure safer, healthier childbirth experiences through advanced facilities. It’s also going to be a supportive environment that really aims to decrease maternal and infant health disparities.”
Dr. Sheldon Genack, chairman of the department of surgery at St. John’s, and Felicia Johnson, district manager of Queens Community Board 14, will be honored at the gala, for their lifelong service to the communities they serve.
Genack will receive the inaugural CEO Distinguished Service Award. He has worked at the hospital for 30 years, and has helped recruit several surgeons in various specialties, including vascular, plastic, colorectal and bariatric surgery. He has also been involved in helping the hospital beyond his clinical role. He previously served as president of its medical executive committee, and helps direct the education and training of residents and medical students.
Donald Morrish, chief executive officer of Episcopal Health Services, will present Genack with the award. Genack said he was at first reluctant to be singled out, but Morrish insisted, saying there was no one more deserving.
“One day, Dr. Morrish approached me and said there was going to be a special CEO award this year,” Genack said. “He told me there was no question — he felt it should go to me. I was a little reluctant to accept it, but he felt really strongly about it and said he couldn’t think of anyone more deserving. I’m still a bit hesitant about these kinds of things, but I agreed, because in the end, it is about doing whatever I can to help the hospital.”
Johnson, who serves as a liaison between Far Rockaway residents and city and state agencies, will receive the Dr. Edward Williams Jr. Community Service Award, named after Dr. Edward Williams Jr., founder and CEO of Regional Ready Rockaway, an organization focused on educating the community about natural and man-made disasters, and former co-chair of the St. John’s Community Advisory Committee.
She previously served on Community Board 14 for 25 years, overseeing the Youth Services and Education, Land Use, and Health and Social Services committees.
Johnson, who has been active in Far Rockaway for nearly 40 years, said that she tries to emulate her parents’ commitment to the community.
“When I got the call, I was shocked, because I just am not the person who expects to get anything for what I do — I just want to do what it is that I feel needs to be done,” she said. “The fact that it is the Dr. Edward Williams Jr. award is even more special, because for those who know me in the community, they know I used to call him Pop after my father died.”
Leghart said she hoped the gala would raise around $400,000 for the new labor, delivery, recovery and postpartum unit, with more than 200 people already registered for the event. She added that it is important event not only for the new unit, but also for other programs and renovations at St. John’s.
“This event is really partnering with us to make a meaningful difference in our community,” Leghart said. “Philanthropy really powers progress. It really drives essential developments like the LDRP unit at EHS. Donations and sponsorships directly support crucial capital improvements, not to mention a lot of our programs. So partnering with us and supporting the gala, directly invests in the future of the health and safety of our community.”
The Blue Phoenix Gala will take place at the Garden City Hotel on June 5. For more information, or to register, visit BluePhoenixGala.org.
