Great Falls Clinic Legacy Foundation Appoints Executive Director
The Great Falls Clinic Legacy Foundation Board is pleased to announce the appointment of Samantha Shinaberger as the Executive Director of the Great Falls Clinic Legacy Foundation.
“Shinaberger is passionate about helping patients all over Montana and it truly reflects through her work with the Foundation over the years. We are fortunate to have her leadership in this capacity,” says Wyman Taylor, Board Chairman and President.
Shinaberger founded the Foundation and has served as the Foundation’s manager since its inception in 2016. She is currently the only employee of the Foundation and manages the $2.4M capital campaign launched in July of 2017, as well as its day-to-day activities. Shinaberger works closely with Clinic leadership, the Foundation board, and the Leadership Cabinet to promote a successful capital campaign.
Shinaberger is also employed by the Great Falls Clinic and oversees marketing, public relations, and physician recruiting. She has been with the Clinic since 2013 and remains active throughout the community of Great Falls by serving on the Lewis and Clark Foundation Board and Executive Committee, as well as involvement with the Great Falls Area Chamber of Commerce and the Great Falls Advertising Federation.
Born and raised in Montana, Shinaberger received her bachelors of science in business administration from MSU-Billings in 2015. She will graduate from the University of Montana College of Business with her master’s degree in business administration in May.
The Great Falls Clinic Legacy Foundation, a nonprofit 501(c)(3), announced its plans for future patient housing last June. The Great Falls Clinic sees an average of 650 surgical and 400 cancer care patients per month, with approximately 42 percent of those patients traveling from out of town. Helping those patients and families from around Montana, seeking treatment at the Great Falls Clinic was part of the vision of the Foundation. Patient care and comfort is of the utmost importance to the Foundation, and patient housing is now their top priority.
“Our patients are our number one priority and helping to relieve some of the financial burden of medical care, as well as, housing and travel costs associated with out-of-town visits is important,” said Samantha Shinaberger, Executive Director. “The housing facility will reduce the amount of stress placed on our patients seeking medical care. Knowing their housing and travel is taken care of for the duration of their treatment is meaningful to them,” she added.
The patient housing facility will feature 12 patient guest rooms, including double queen rooms and single king rooms to accommodate large and small families. The rooms will be handicap- accessible and patient-friendly. To accommodate all lengths of patient treatments, all rooms will have a kitchenette and other hotel amenities. Along with patient rooms, the facility will feature an entry atrium displaying a donor recognition tree, a self-serve kitchen and dining area, family gathering areas, a laundry room, and an exterior gathering area with a fire pit.
“The community of Great Falls and surrounding areas would benefit greatly from the proposed housing project, especially knowing they are helping some very ill, financially burdened patients. In some patient cancer cases, a course of radiotherapy may take as long as eight weeks to complete, with treatments given daily,” said Vicki Newmiller, CEO of the Great Falls Clinic and board member of the GFC Legacy Foundation. “Without patient housing available for these patients, they would be required to stay in a hotel, sometimes far away from their treatment center, which only adds to their financial burden,” added Newmiller.
The Great Falls Clinic Legacy Foundation, started in 2016, was created to help patients seeking treatment at the Great Falls Clinic. The Foundation’s mission is to bring hope and healing to Great Falls and surrounding communities, by providing the best access to healthcare possible. The Foundation seeks to achieve its mission of hope and healing through funding approaches that will result in: providing affordable housing and travel options for patients and families in need, increasing the level of care for all patients, promoting patient health and wellness, expanding opportunities beyond just housing and travel assistance that will bring hope and healing to the Great Falls community.
For more information or to make a donation, please visit www.gfclegacy.org or call (406) 771-3107.
# #
