You Can Make a Difference
There are many ways to help support programs and patient care at Riverside's not-for-profit community hospitals. You can donate blood at a local blood drive. Or become a volunteer at a Riverside facility near you. Other people prefer to make donations to the Riverside Health System Foundation. And some do all of these things.

You too, can make a difference! Your contribution, regardless of the size or type of gift, can combine with others to improve our neighborhoods.

Donate Now
The Riverside Health System Foundation accepts contributions of any amount at any time. In only a few minutes you can help us improve the health of the communities we serve by donating online now.

Other Ways to Give
Contact the director of the Riverside Health System Foundation or call the office at (757) 534-7070 if you would like to speak with someone about other ways to give, including avenues such as:

• Annual Gifts
• Memorial Gifts
• Honorariums
• Planned estate giving
• Participation in or help with a special event.

Some Ways Riverside Has Helped Improve Communities

Lackey Free Family Medicine Clinic
Ten years ago, Dr. Jim Shaw, pulmonary specialist, and his wife opened a one-evening-a-week free clinic to serve the medical needs of residents in the Lackey area of York County. Staffed by volunteer doctors, nurses and staff members, the clinic has grown from seeing five patients per night to seeing as many as 30 per night. Riverside Health System Foundation supports this faith-based ministry by underwriting the costs of medical supplies, laboratory tests and x-ray procedures.

Essex County School Nurse Program
In 2001, Riverside Health System Foundation funded $350,000 for four years to provide for the addition of school nurses to the Essex County Public Schools. The nurses are a valuable resource to children, parents and teachers, offering on-site services, and early identification of health problems. They regularly administer medication, provide special medical procedures for asthmatic students, monitor health conditions, provide staff physicals and check staff blood pressures. Now considered a critical part of Essex County’s educational mission, the work of the school nurses reinforces the importance of health and well-being as prerequisites to educational success.

Project: “Construction Sight” – Prevent Blindness Virginia
Children who fall behind early in school often stay behind, and considering the fact that 85% of what a child learns in a normal classroom setting is through vision, it is easy to understand how a young child with poor vision might quickly fall behind. In 2004, Riverside Health System Foundation funded Project: “Construction Sight” through the Prevent Blindness Virginia organization. The $56,000 grant will bring nationally standardized vision screenings to students in grades 3, 7 and 10 in Isle of Wight County, Newport News, York County, Hampton, Poquoson, James City County, King and Queen County, King William County, Essex County, Middlesex County, Gloucester County and Mathews County. An estimated 108,000 school children will benefit from this project.

The Alzheimer’s Association – Southeastern Chapter
Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive, and ultimately fatal, disease of the brain. Based on national estimates, there are over 26,000 people with Alzheimer’s disease in Southeastern Virginia, with an estimated 4,000 in the Peninsula area. Since 2001 the Riverside Health System Foundation has provided support to the Alzheimer’s Association Southeastern Virginia Chapter. As a result, we have been able to address the critical and ever-growing need to heighten awareness of and access to education about Alzheimer’s disease and linkage to community resources to those dealing with the daily challenges of the disease.