The Community Christmas Card saves lives

Dec. 3—warren@starbeacon.com and sterry@starbeacon.com

GENEVA — The Community Christmas Card (CCC) is a Geneva area holiday tradition that has endured for more than 50 years and saved countless lives.

Generations of families have made donations to the CCC program to help purchase state-of-the-art medical equipment for UH Geneva Medical Center's Critical Care Unit.

For many years, Greta Cordova and her family have participated in the Community Christmas Card program. In September, Cordova benefited from some of the equipment purchased through the CCC program when a non-invasive heart monitor was used to treat her atrial fibrillation and pneumonia.

"I have to say the care was great," said Cordova, whose husband, Dr. Angelo B. Cordova, was a surgeon at UH Geneva from 1969 to 1994.

Cordova's daughter, Cathy Brashear, said it was amazing to see all the equipment the Community Christmas Card purchased surrounding her mother in the intensive care unit.

"It was a very unique experience — the staff went above and beyond," she said. "When I was asked to join the Community Christmas Card Committee many years ago, I was very happy to accept. My father, Dr. Cordova, knew first hand the importance of state-of-the-art medical equipment, not only as a physician but a patient, as well. It's wonderful how our community rallies around this decades old grass roots project each year. They realize the importance too."

Dr. Amitabah Goel, director of Critical Care at UH Geneva Medical Center, said the community's commitment to annually raise thousands of dollars is fantastic.

Community contributions this holiday season will help to purchase a Starling Fluid Management Monitoring system, which "measures blood flow at the patient's core and provides a full accurate hemodynamic profile within seconds to help the provider determine whether fluid will help or harm a patient," Goel said.

"Critically ill patients often have fluid imbalances caused by sepsis or shock," he said. "The ability to rapidly identify fluid and volume status of a patient is critical to ensuring appropriate care. Sepsis is one of the most common causes of admissions to the critical care unit and has a high mortality rate."

The Starling Fluid Management System will continue the hospital's focus on safety and ZERO Harm, he said.

The CCC program generally raises $13,000 to $14,000 a year, he said.

Katie Lewis, a nurse in the hospital's intensive care unit, said regional hospitals would not be able to afford important life-saving equipment without community support.

The names of all who contribute any amount (most contributions are $20 or less) are printed in the Community Christmas Card published in local newspapers.

The Community Christmas Card was founded in 1970 by Geneva neighbors Margery Martin and Patricia Merrell. As the holidays neared, an Intensive Care Unit was on the wish list at Memorial Hospital of Geneva. The two had an idea for a unique fund-raising effort to help the hospital care for critically ill friends and family. They asked their friends and neighbors to offer a donation to a special fund to establish the Intensive Care Unit at the hospital.

In the first year, community members' contributions helped to add the Critical Care Unit at the hospital. In subsequent years, Dr. Zalmon Sherwood, Dr. Mike Meshginpoosh, Dr. Angelo Cordova and, more recently, Dr. Amitabh Goel, have designated an item of medical equipment that is on the medical staff's wish.

Equipment the community has provided for the Critical Care Unit includes: state-of-the-art monitors, telemetry systems, defibrillators, medication infusion systems, EKG monitors and electrocardiographs. Each piece of medical equipment is affixed with a special tag indicating that it was purchased by Geneva area community members to help the hospital save lives.

An 11-member CCC committee coordinates the program but is aided by the efforts of hundreds of community members who have volunteered their time and talents.

Central Hardware displays a large, illuminated version of the Community Christmas Card logo in their store window each year and serves as a collection point for contributions.

Over a 10-year span, 35 Geneva area families opened their uniquely decorated homes to visitors for the Community Christmas Card Committee's Holiday Home Tours.

Local artists showcased their talents by creating hand painted holiday themed chairs for a "Chairity" raffle, a local quilter donated her work for a fund raising raffle for more than a dozen years.

Cork Elementary students held an "Every Penny Counts" drive and Geneva Middle and High School students organized Hat Days to supplement CCC fundraising. Students performed announcements and songs on the radio and elementary art students and their teacher, Kathy Simmons, created colorful additions to a display at Central Hardware.

Families, organizations, and businesses can add their names to the Community Christmas Card by making a contribution at the Geneva offices of Andover Bank, US Bank and Lakeview Federal Credit Union, at UH Geneva Medical Center and at Central Hardware where preprinted donation envelopes are available. Contributions can be offered online at Uhgiving.org/communitychristmascard or by contacting any Community Christmas Card committee member.

This year, each family who offers a contribution to the CCC fund this year will have their name entered in a drawing for one of ten unique personalized ornaments created by Lindsay Bell. Each ornament will be affixed with a tag with the family name of the contributor penned in Spencerian Script by local artists.

The deadline to add names to the CCC is Dec. 19.

For information, email the committee at communitychristmascard@gmail.com call 440-415-3911 or find them on Facebook.