Angel Ball raises $3.75 million for endowment fund

With a $2.5 million gift from the Forest Park Foundation included, the OSF Saint Francis Foundation announced its 2013 Angel Ball raised more than $3.75 million to benefit the OSF Endowment Fund.

The Forest Park donation was announced during the ball, which was at the Peoria Civic Center Ballroom on Saturday, Jan. 12, the foundation said in a new release.

Nearly 1,200 people attended the event, which featured the music of The Midtown Men, the original singing group from the Broadway show Jersey Boys.

The Angel Ball is held every five years with proceeds going to the OSF Endowment Fund, an investment in the continuation of The Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis Mission. Gifts to the endowment provide long-term funding sources and support OSF programs.

"The Angel Ball is a unique opportunity to celebrate the Mission of The Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis, which has been making a major impact on Peoria and central Illinois for more than 136 years," said Tom Hammerton, OSF Saint Francis Foundation vice president. "The funds raised will help ensure that we continue to serve with the greatest care and love for decades to come."

The Forest Park Foundation is donating $2.5 million to the Jump Trading Simulation and Education Center. The gift, named in memory of Hassie Rutherford, mother of Forest Park Foundation board member Dr. William Rutherford, Jr., will be used for interprofessional education and faculty development.

"The gift from Dr. Rutherford and the Forest Park Foundation will be used to enhance the capabilities to produce a very important feature for simulation and that is interprofessional education techniques," said Dr. John Vozenilek, chief medical officer for simulation. "What this means is instead of practicing around each other we're practicing with each other, doctors, nurses, and ancillary staff working together to learn and expand procedures and improve quality."

Currently under construction on the OSF Saint Francis Medical Center campus, the Jump Trading Simulation and Education Center is scheduled to open in April. Jump will be among the top centers in the country, with an expected worldwide impact, to use the latest innovations in simulation education to train physicians and medical professionals from across the region to improve patient outcomes and lower health care costs, the news release said.

About the Author

Paul Gordon is the editor of The Peorian after spending 29 years of indentured servitude at the Peoria Journal Star. He’s an award-winning writer, raconteur and song-and-dance man. He also went to a high school whose team name is the Alices (that’s Vincennes Lincoln High School in Indiana; you can look it up).