Conquer Cancer: Andrea Clay and Dave Wiemer of Conquer Cancer Foundation accept a check of nearly $120,000 from Ben Salzmann. Five other charities received a total of $380,000.
Mental Health America: Rachael Lewinski, Julie Preder, and Brianna Heusterberg from Mental Health America accept a check for nearly $115,000 from Ben Salzmann.
Safe Harbor: Safe Harbor’s Ryan Sorenson accepts a check for over $85,000 from Acuity’s Sheri Murphy and Ben Salzmann.
Sharon Richardson: Charmaine Conrad and Genesis Avina accept a check for over $74,000 from Acuity’s Shane Paltzer and Ben Salzmann.
Feeding America: Feeding America’s Rayna Andrews and Kaitlin Lavelle accept a check for nearly $55,000 from Ben Salzmann.
Salvation Army: Major Jay Davis and Carrye Jo Coney of The Salvation Army accept a check for over $50,000 from Ben Salzmann.
At a December 2019 Town Hall meeting, Acuity employees determined the distribution of a half-million dollars among six different organizations. Those organizations included the Conquer Cancer Foundation, Feeding America, Mental Health America, Safe Harbor, The Salvation Army, and Sharon S. Richardson Community Hospice.
The Conquer Cancer Foundation received the largest allocation of nearly $120,000. The other five groups each received donations ranging from $50,000 to over $100,000. Conquer Cancer Senior Philanthropic Officer Dave Wiemer explained how Acuity’s donation helps support the foundations’ mission of funding breakthrough research, including how a young cancer patient named Bella was able to undergo cutting-edge treatment made possible by a Conquer Cancer grant.
“Funding helped change the course of her treatment, and it worked,” Wiemer said. “Her scans showed immediate changes and the cancer disappeared. Bella has been cancer-free for more than a year, and none of that would have been possible without the support of donors like the people at Acuity.”
“One of my favorite expressions is, ‘Be kinder than necessary because everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle,’” said Ben Salzmann, Acuity President and CEO. “Being kind and supporting our community is a priority for Acuity, particularly at the end of the year when charitable organizations battle with higher need for their services while facing budget constraints.”
This is the seventh consecutive year that Acuity employees have directed a special year-end contribution, which adds to the company’s longstanding tradition of philanthropy. In 2019, Acuity also donated $2.5 million to Aurora Health Care, the greatest donation from any single source to Aurora, to support neonatal and pediatric care in the community.