Baltimore – September 30, 2023, marks the 25th anniversary of LifeBridge Health, a community-focused healthcare system with five hospitals, hundreds of physician offices, more than 13,000 team members and a wide range of programs and services, from urgent care and hospice to senior living and a fitness center.
To celebrate this milestone anniversary, LifeBridge Health team members are reconnecting with the organization’s mission of “improving health in the communities we serve” by volunteering their time at service projects in communities served by the healthcare system, including in Baltimore City as well as Baltimore and Carroll counties.
“LifeBridge Health was founded as a health system with a focus on community-oriented wellness and health services. As we approached our 25th anniversary, we looked to our founding principles and our purpose of caring for our communities to commemorate the occasion. Connecting with those communities and giving back through volunteer service seemed like an ideal way to celebrate this important milestone,” says Neil Meltzer, president and CEO of LifeBridge Health.
He adds, “From groundskeeping at schools and packing food at a rescue mission to a back-to-school supply drive and serving meals at local shelter, our team members have been volunteering in celebration of our anniversary and making a difference in our communities, above and beyond their day-to-day work of providing top-quality healthcare and community services.”
LifeBridge Health’s community development team reached out to the system’s partners and communities to coordinate more than a dozen events where health system team members could volunteer during this anniversary year. Volunteer projects started in the spring and will continue through the end of 2023. Plans are now in the works for a systemwide Thanksgiving food drive in partnership with the Ed Reed Foundation.
Through these volunteer events, LifeBridge Health team members have done everything from painting picnic tables at Mary Ann Winterling Elementary in Baltimore to sorting food donations at the Westminster Rescue Mission in Carroll County. During an outdoor summer concert at Foundry Row in Owings Mills, health system employees collected hundreds of school supplies for students at Winfield Elementary in Randallstown and for Northwest Hospital’s DOVE program, which supports families facing domestic abuse.
“Team members who have volunteered at these service projects have shared what a rewarding experience it has been, connecting with our community members outside of their usual business interactions. We look forward to building these connections through further projects through the end of the year,” says Larry Mack, manager of community partnerships for LifeBridge Health.
For teams that could not participate in onsite events, the community development team offered ideas for donation drives or other community outreach projects. For example, Baker Rehab Group, part of LifeBridge Health’s Partners Division, is currently working with the Frederick Rescue Mission and Clarksburg Closet to provide a variety of care and resources to those in need in our community.
LifeBridge Health was formed on September 30, 1998, when Northwest Hospital in Randallstown merged with Sinai Health System (then compromised of Sinai Hospital of Baltimore and Levindale Hebrew Geriatric Center and Hospital). Carroll Hospital joined LifeBridge Health in 2015, and Grace Medical Center (formerly Bon Secours Baltimore Hospital) became part of the system in 2019.
A special anniversary webpage features a video timeline of LifeBridge Health’s history.
“Caring for our communities has been the foundation of the work that we do. We are so thrilled to celebrate our 25th anniversary with our communities and show just how much we care,” says Lee Coplan, chairman of the LifeBridge Health board of directors.
About LifeBridge Health: LifeBridge Health is one of the largest, most comprehensive providers of health services in Maryland. LifeBridge Health includes Sinai Hospital of Baltimore, Northwest Hospital, Carroll Hospital, Levindale Hebrew Geriatric Center and Hospital, Grace Medical Center, and related subsidiaries and affiliates. For more information, visit lifebridgehealth.org