Posts

Do you want to give back to a cause that will serve the people around you? Come join us and volunteer at the Great Falls Clinic Legacy Foundation! We would love to work with you to help welcome patients who are traveling here for treatment.

Ways you can help:

1. Laundry – just sheets and towels, but we would love to have some volunteers help us get laundry washed.
2. Baking – Do you have a talent for baking? We would love to have you help us!
3. Clerical – Help check in patients and run the Foundation from our side! We would love your help.

Have another strength that you think would be a real asset to our team? Let us know! Please reach out to the front desk at (406) 216-8057 or by email at cassandra.jones@gfclinic.com.

Thank you for the video Great Falls Development Authority for the lovely video sharing our new Harold & Carmen Poulsen Legacy Housing facility! We are so excited to share this facility with the community around Great Falls!

Hello, my name is Craig Ulrich. My wife Janis and I are from Conrad, Montana. I travel to Great Falls, MT to receive cancer treatment. This is the fifth time I have been diagnosed with cancer. Most recently, I was diagnosed with bronchial cancer, but I have also been treated for lung cancer, colon cancer, and cancer in my arm, and skin cancer. I started treatment for my most recent diagnosis on July 6^th, and am due to finish treatment on August 20^th. My treatment consist of radiation and chemotherapy. When I have radiation, my appointments last around 45 minutes. When I am having chemo and radiation together, my treatment lasts 3 to 4 hours. I drive to Great Falls every day for treatment.

I have had the best experience with the Oncology Staff at the Great Falls Clinic. They care about their patients deeply, and are committed to an individual level of care that I value tremendously. From the receptionist at the front desk, to my scheduler, to the oncology nurses and providers, you can tell that their focus and priority is patient care. Cancer treatment is not enjoyable, but they do their best to make it the best experience I can have.

It was the level of personal care I received at the Great Falls Clinic Oncology Department that made me and my wife’s decision to donate easy. We wanted to donate to the Legacy Foundation to honor their efforts and dedication. I know how a job can get to you over the course of time. I also know how well patients will be treated here, which made me and my wife’s decision to donate easy. The staff here have not let their job make them jaded to their patient’s needs. 

Meet our donor of the month, Scott Wilson, owner of Cascade Electric! Scott lives in Great Falls, and his family has been involved with the community for several years. He owns and works at the Cascade Electric Company in Great Falls. In 1924, Scott’s grandfather worked for the Smith Family, who previously owned Cascade Electric. In 1984 his family became owners of Cascade Electric.

Scott first heard of the Legacy Foundation through a good contractor friend, Ed Venetz (president of the Foundation Board). In 2019, he attended a fundraiser the Foundation hosted at the University of Providence. When asked why Scott was passionate about the Legacy Foundation, he replied, “I remember when the Clinic was downtown. My childhood physician was a Clinic doctor. I always went to the Clinic, and when I needed surgery 20 years ago, I went to the Clinic and had a great experience.” Scott shared, “It was an easy decision for us to believe in the Foundation and its mission. It is vital to Great Falls and Central Montana.”

I am an oncology patient at Great Falls Clinic. I live in the hi-line area, which means my round trip commute for cancer care is 120 miles. I received my diagnosis around January 15, 2021 when I was 63 years old. My treatment began around March 1, 2021 and ended April 9, 2021. I then had a follow-up surgery at about 6 weeks at a place that does Esophagectomies. The oncologists at the Great Falls Clinic helped us navigate the decision making process. I cannot say enough about the efficient and courteous support staff in the Oncology Department. My follow up appointments were scheduled before I left the Clinic, which was very convenient for me.

Traveling was a chore. Fortunately, I had a supportive family to help with driving. We stayed in Great Falls at motels on six different nights during the two months I had of chemo and radiation. Two times we stayed in a motel due to the roads being bad, and the other four times were due to early morning appointments. Thankfully, my family travels often and had motel vouchers that they shared with us.

During my treatment, we watched the housing unit being built for patients who travel to Great Falls for treatment. It was fun to watch the daily construction progress. I understand it will open soon. This facility will be a great support for future patients. We were offered a reduced rate at a local motel through the Great Falls Clinic during treatment since the housing facility was not available. It would have been nice to have somewhere close to where my doctors were, and I am happy for future patients of the Great Falls Clinic.

My name is Marianne Burleigh. My hometown is Lewistown, MT. In 2020, I was received a medical diagnosis that necessitated my stay in Great Falls for 17 days. Great Falls is an hour and a half away from my hometown, and I knew I would not be able to drive back and forth every day. I had to go to the Clinic once a day for 17 days, but my treatment was only on the weekdays, which meant I ended up staying in Great Falls for over three weeks considering that extra time added for the weekend.

Because the Foundation did not have its own housing facility at that time, I stayed at the Great Falls Inn. Unfortunately, I was only allowed to stay during the week, and had to find my own housing during the weekend. I was able to stay with a friend, but would have preferred only staying in one place for my treatment. With the new facility, I know that is something I will be able to do.

When I first received my diagnosis, I was distressed. I did not know what the next steps would be, and felt so alone. Fortunately, I heard through Tina Rabbitt, the social worker at the Great Falls Clinic Cancer Center, about the Legacy Foundation, and it was good to know that I had an affordable option available to me, and that my housing would be secure for the duration of my treatment. The staff at the Great Falls Inn and the nurses in Oncology were very nice to me. Now I am healthy again.

The Great Falls Clinic Legacy Foundation is pleased to welcome Grant Bebee to the Great Falls Legacy Foundation staff. Grant is a well-known member of the Great Falls community and plans to help contribute to both the Foundation’s and the Great Falls Clinic’s success. Grant officially joins out team on May 24, 2021!

About Grant Bebee

Grant is originally from Havre, Montana, and a graduate of Havre High School. He attended the University of Montana in Missoula where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism. Grant has worked in several businesses in Great Falls, including Northwind’s Publishing and Printing, the Great Falls Tribune, Spectrum Reach-Charter Communications, and most recently Cowles Media Company/KFBB as a Senior Account Manager. 

Grant was inspired to pursue a career in the nonprofit industry to give back to the community he has lived in for the past 25 years. Grant shared, “I understand how and why the Legacy Foundation is needed. My mother started her battle with cancer 33 years ago and has been diagnosed with four different types of cancer during that time. In the beginning, my parents had to travel to Great Falls for my mother’s cancer surgeries, treatments and checkups. Most times, they drove to Great Falls, then back to Havre on the same day, which eventually led them to retire and move to Great Falls.” Grant continued, “We just celebrated her 88th birthday this month. I understand and have great empathy for those who are coming here for their treatment. I was in college when my mom was first diagnosed. It was always on my mind how her appointments went and was she still in remission.” He added, “She has been cancer free now for the past 15 years. Her successful treatments at the Great Falls Clinic allowed her to experience my college graduation, my wedding, my family, and share another 21 years with the love of her life, my father.”

In his free time, Grant enjoys working in his yard, gardening, and traveling with his wife, Doree. In the fall you can find him glued to his TV watching college and NFL football, especially when his beloved UM Griz take to the field. It is also not uncommon to see Grant in the confines of Washington-Grizzly Stadium at least once during the football season.

Beth Duke is the owner of Coldwell Banker/The Falls Real Estate located in Great Falls, MT. She was first introduced to the Legacy Foundation by a friend who encouraged her to join the Legacy Foundation Leadership Cabinet. “I am a cancer survivor and know how important it is to have somewhere to stay, that you are safe, and you have assistance if necessary.” Beth shared. “I enjoy being a part of helping our community and outlying communities get the medical attention they deserve. You have to be passionate to believe in something. I believe this Foundation is vital to our communities.”

“I was a cancer patient at the Great Falls Clinic Cancer Center 21 years ago! Thanks to Dr. Guter and his team, I am here and able to support this mission. I believe in paying it forward.” Beth shared. Beth knew something was wrong, and due to her family’s history with cancer, she took it upon herself to get the healthcare she needed. “I have always listened to my body and I knew something wasn’t right. I forced my primary care provider at the time to do a chest X-ray and they found the lymph nodes in my chest were a huge mass. I was diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma and had Chemo treatments twice a month for six months.”

Beth shared some final thoughts on why she donates. “When going out of town for treatment I believe by knowing the patient and family will have a place to stay will remove stress from an already stressful situation. Any way we can pay it forward to someone who is going through diagnosis and treatment will make their day brighter.”

I live in Stanford, Montana but I was raised in Fort Benton, Montana. In 2011, at the age of 42, I was diagnosed with a very aggressive form of breast cancer. My surgeon gave me the option of either having a lumpectomy or mastectomy. I chose to have a bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction. When my surgeon gave me this diagnosis I knew it was either fight or flight. In my heart, I knew I was going to be alright, and I was more worried about my spouse. I was fortunate to have a large group of very supportive people. My whole family, as well as my coworkers, right down to the guys at my work shaving their heads so I didn’t feel alone.

Due to the type of breast cancer I was diagnosed with and my age, it was recommended by my Oncologist, Dr. Guter, to have eight rounds of chemotherapy. So every two weeks from December to February I would have chemotherapy at the Great Falls Clinic Infusion Center, which would last approximately 4-5 hours each time. I was very, very lucky because I never got sick from chemotherapy, I only felt tired, except during the initial treatment. The Infusion nurses were right on top of it, always following up the next day and offering any suggestions that would help me.

While I was having treatments and driving to and from my treatment, the weather was in my favor and we had a mild winter. It made the 65 mile drive to Great Falls for treatment better as we had one less thing to worry about. If the winter would have been a good old-fashioned Montana winter, I would have been staying in Great Falls at either my sister or mother’s house as the Legacy Foundation wasn’t created yet.  

Here is it is 2021, ten years since my initial diagnosis, and I believe I get to graduate from seeing my oncologist every six months to once a year, if not longer. My doctor has kept a pretty close eye on me! Regarding my cancer “team” during this journey they were great, and I am forever grateful! October will be ten years since I was diagnosed and I cannot believe how advanced medical technology has come! If the Legacy Foundation’s facility had been available to me to use during my treatment, I absolutely would have used it. It would have been very convenient, especially with just having to cross the road to receive treatment.