How an employee’s payroll deduction gift helped save her mother’s life A Life-Saving Deduction
Lauren and her mother, who benefited from the associate-funded 3D mammography machine.
When Lauren began making payroll deduction donations to the employee giving campaign in 2016, she only thought in general terms about helping Adventist Health Portland buy its first 3D mammography machine.
“There is no history of breast cancer in my family, but I thought that this was an exciting cause to donate to,” said Lauren. For her, it wasn’t personal.
Until it was.
Three years later, Lauren’s mother received a free 3D mammogram from the breast cancer screening fund for her annual screening visit. It is due to this program that she was able to schedule these screenings regularly. Thanks to the both the foundation’s program and the machine’s exceptional imaging ability, her mother’s breast cancer was found early, while it was most treatable.
Disbelief and panic came over Lauren. Suddenly, the entire course of her family’s life changed, but she knew her mother was in good hands at Adventist Health Portland. The oncology team quickly the confirmed diagnosis in November, performed a lumpectomy in December and started chemotherapy in January.
The part Lauren played in helping purchase the very machine that saved her mother’s life didn’t dawn on her at first. Lauren was foremost focused on helping her mother with her treatments. Only later, as she was reviewing her pay stubs and tax forms that Lauren remembered her donations and realized how she had directly impacted her mother’s health journey — and that of thousands of other members of the community.
“I was one of the drops in the bucket that helped save my mother’s life and countless others… She’s healthy, volunteering at the hospital, and she is here,” Lauren says.
Ultimately, early detection made possible by the machine Lauren helped buy, combined with great care, saved her mother’s life.
Through this experience, Lauren realized the importance of donating to causes you care about, especially in healthcare. Without the participation of donors, employees and the community alike, many of our patients, friends and family might not be able to receive the care they need when and where they need it most.
Lauren also knows donations can come in many areas, not just toward the capital needs of Adventist Health Portland. As the volunteer services manager, she knows the impact people can make outside of finances.
“We all have something to give — gifts and resources that are uniquely yours, that change people’s lives,” Lauren notes. “[The employee giving campaign] is one way you can use your gifts to change a life.”
And when we put those gifts and resources together, we can change the world, one patient at a time.
If you are interested in joining Lauren in here her philanthropic journey, visit our website to sign up for payroll deduction or a one-time gift. Every dollar matters when it comes to saving lives.