Top left: A capital campaign event at Highland Square Mall, New Glasgow. Top Right: Dr. Charlie became the mascot of the initial capital campaign, hammering on the fundraising thermometer on the hospital front lawn.
Scott Weeks, Chair of the Aberdeen Health Foundation’s capital campaign, whose leadership 40 years ago helped rally the community behind an ambitious $5 million endowment goal.
40 Years
of community investment in health care
The Aberdeen Health Foundation was established in 1986 so local fundraising could support health care in Pictou County for generations to come. What began as concern about replacing aging equipment grew into a bigger vision: to build a charitable endowment that could provide steady, long-term support without having to return to the community with annual campaigns asking for more.
When outside experts said a community this size couldn’t meet an ambitious fundraising goal of five million dollars, Pictou County proved them wrong. By 1995, the original campaign had raised approximately $6.5 million, built through countless local efforts and the leadership of volunteers committed to ensuring health care decisions reflected the needs and priorities of the people of Pictou County.
Now, forty years later, that same trust and shared commitment has helped steward more than $35 million in gifts from local donors into over $38 million invested back into local health care, shaping a legacy that belongs to the community that built it.
“The Aberdeen Health Foundation really defines what a health foundation can do. By focusing on the entirety of people’s health, not just infrastructure, it has become a beacon for the impact foundations can have across our health system.”
– Dr. Aaron Smith, Medical Executive Director CZ, Nova Scotia Health
Foundations of Care
Jim Gogan Medical Equipment Endowment
The Jim Gogan Medical Equipment Endowment honours the foresight of founding director Jim Gogan, who championed the creation of a permanent fund to support hospital equipment over the long term. From the beginning, Mr. Gogan believed that protecting capital and investing wisely would allow the Foundation to respond to evolving health care needs over time.
In a 2019 letter to the Foundation, he reflected on how the original purpose of the endowment was to provide $300,000 to replace a single worn blood analysis machine, noting how unimaginable the scale of impact would later become. Today, that foresight continues to support critical equipment investments across the hospital, year after year.
New SPY-PHI technology now helps surgeons visualize lymphatic drainage in real-time, allowing them to map the lymph nodes most likely to be exposed to cancer cells. By providing an accurate alternative to radioactive tracers, which often face supply shortages, this investment reduces surgery delays and ensures reliable access to high-quality care close to home.
Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) equipment, made possible by a gift from J. Doreen Bennett in memory of her father, Roy J. Bennett, is maintaining access to essential eye testing for local residents. By enabling diagnostic imaging to be completed locally and shared electronically with ophthalmologists in other communities, it reduces the need for travel while supporting timely diagnosis and monitoring of eye conditions, easing the financial and emotional burden on patients and families.
Digital mammography upgrades at Aberdeen Hospital are strengthening early detection and diagnosis of breast cancer. With the addition of 3D imaging, care teams can see dense breast tissue more clearly, supporting earlier detection and more accurate interpretation.
KUBTEC technology allows surgeons to confirm cancer removal in real-time, right in the operating room, by imaging tissue immediately after lumps are removed. The added precision ensures only necessary tissue is taken, reduces the need for repeat procedures and leads to better recovery and long-term quality of life.
Community members can now receive life-sustaining kidney care closer to home at the expanded 12-station renal dialysis unit in Pictou. This expansion has eliminated hours of travel for patients requiring treatment three times a week and cleared local waitlists for dialysis. The project was supported by $1.2 million from the Aberdeen Health Foundation and $300,000 from the Sutherland Harris Memorial Hospital Foundation, in partnership with Nova Scotia Health and the provincial government.
“The reduced travel time has given me back countless hours each week. I now have more time and energy for my family and to rest and recharge.”
– Leonard Lowe, renal dialysis patient
A Broader Vision of Health
Doris & Ray Hiltz
Doris Hiltz bequest paves way for therapeutic arts funding
In 2025, the Aberdeen Health Foundation received a $2.4 million unrestricted gift from the estate of Doris Hiltz, the largest single bequest in the Foundation’s 40-year history.
Doris Hiltz was a chemist by profession and a musician at heart. Music was not only a personal interest, but something she shared generously. She played violin with the Pictou County Orchestra and continued performing until she was nearly 90. Doris’s gift also honours her late husband, Ray Hiltz, an oceanographer who was known for his meticulous workmanship, spending countless hours in his workshop building model boats and completing projects for their home and gardens. Together, Doris and Ray lived modestly and thoughtfully, while giving generously to many organizations throughout their lives.
In consultation with the estate’s executor, the Foundation developed an approach that aligns with Doris and Ray’s values. Their gift will fuel preventative population health through therapeutic music and arts initiatives, both in hospital settings and in the community. These initiatives will be recognized as being funded by the Doris & Ray Hiltz Aberdeen Healing Arts (AHA!) Funding.
“It’s not medicine-oriented care, it’s humanity-oriented care.”
– Dr. Anne Kwasnik
While the AHA! Funding is a new initiative, the Foundation has already seen the impact of creative arts in health through its support of the music therapy program at Aberdeen Hospital. “Music is lovely, but music therapy is therapy, and there’s a big difference,” explains former Palliative Care Physician Dr. Anne Kwasnik. “People come away feeling more in tune with themselves and better able to understand, at a gut level, what is important to them.”
Heather Cameron, Music Therapist at Aberdeen Hospital, describes this as “whole-person care”. Rather than just treating a medical diagnosis, she focuses on supporting the human spirit and fostering interpersonal relationships. She says one of the most unique aspects of her work is the Heart Song Legacy, where she records a patient’s heartbeat and incorporates it into a song, creating a lasting connection for the family.
Heather Cameron, Music Therapist at Aberdeen Hospital
“You managed to pivot to the needs of the day, bringing joy and a vehicle for expression through music. You thoughtfully and intentionally built an experience that became a highlight of each week… To be transported into that temporary world, where illness wasn’t uppermost, gave me such relief.”
– Gratitude from a Palliative Care family member
The AHA! Funding will honour Doris’s life-long appreciation for both science and creativity by supporting holistic approaches to health, long into the future.
Balancing innovation with responsibility
For forty years, the Aberdeen Health Foundation has evolved alongside health care, shaped by new challenges, technologies, and changing community needs. What has remained constant is the responsibility to steward resources thoughtfully, so care can continue to keep pace with that change.
The Foundation’s investments this past year reflect both continuity and progress across the health system. Advancements in diagnostic and surgical technologies are improving accuracy and access to timely care close to home. At the same time, investments in training environments and modernized equipment are helping health care teams adapt to new models of care and respond to increasingly complex needs. Beyond traditional health care settings, initiatives like Healthy Libraries – Healthy Communities and Aberdeen Healing Arts Funding extend this work upstream, supporting earlier opportunities for prevention and well-being through holistic, community-centred approaches.
In my first year as Board Chair, I’ve seen how the Foundation balances innovation with responsibility. Each decision is guided by a commitment to respond to the needs of the people we serve today, while preparing for what lies ahead. This is made possible by the trust of donors, partners, and the broader community. With that shared responsibility in mind, the Foundation is well positioned for its next chapter.
– Heather MacDonald, Chair, Aberdeen Health Foundation
2026
Board of Directors
Heather MacDonald, Chair
Lisa MacDonald, Past Chair
Marsha Sobey, Vice Chair
Donald MacGillivray, Treasurer
Ashley Harrison, Secretary
Kimberly Byrne
Dr. Patricia Craig
Marcel Deveau
Clinton Keay
Stephen Leslie
Kim Livingston
Ruth Martin
Harry Munro
Dr. Chakshu Sahi
Ryan Sharpe
Frank Sobey
Moving forward with heart
This past year has been a powerful reminder of how deeply people care about one another in this community. I’ve had the privilege of speaking with those whose support takes many forms — from the time, energy, and expertise of volunteers and partners, to local leaders organizing first-time grassroots fundraisers and annual traditions that bring people together year after year. From small, personal gifts to the largest bequest in the Foundation’s history, all given with care and amplified through collective action. These contributions show the many ways people turn that care into positive impact.
As we mark our 40th anniversary, I’ve been grateful for the chance to look back and reconnect with many of those who helped shape the Foundation from its earliest years through to now. You will see a few of their voices woven throughout this report: words taken from our conversations that bridge our past with our future. Hearing their stories alongside the contributions of today’s supporters reminds us of a simple truth: this work has always been grounded in people supporting one another. In a world that can feel increasingly divided, that collective purpose stands in clear contrast.
To everyone who has played a role, past and present, thank you. Your commitment is what allows the Foundation to honour its history while moving forward with confidence and heart.
– Michelle Ferris, Executive Director, Aberdeen Health Foundation
Strengthening community care through VON in Pictou County
A $138,000 investment is strengthening community-based care delivered by the Victorian Order of Nurses in Pictou County. The funding has supported new equipment across VON’s Community Nursing Clinic and Adult Day Program, including portable ultrasound scanners, smart infusion pumps, pulse oximeters, and assessment carts. It also includes an interactive dementia projection system for the Adult Day Program, which uses projected light, colour, and games to promote engagement in a safer, more interactive way while reducing agitation and creating moments of calm and enjoyment.
“These are pieces of equipment that our teams either didn’t have before, or that will significantly enhance what we’re able to do in Pictou County.”
– Carol Curley, Associate Vice-President VON Canada
Emergency Department staff taking part in Trauma Nova Scotia training
Advancing trauma care through team training
The Aberdeen Health Foundation recently funded an intensive training day hosted by Trauma Nova Scotia, bringing high-stakes simulations to emergency department care teams. Using a specialized mobile simulation truck, the course allowed multidisciplinary teams including doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, paramedics and more to practice “high-acuity, low volume” scenarios. These are rare but life-threatening cases where coordinated teamwork can be the difference between life and death.
“The Foundation plays a huge role in being able to offer programs like this. It enhances the care we provide to the patients we serve. The people who attend go back and discuss what they’ve learned, and that learning will be passed on to other colleagues.”
– Matthew Vaughan, Assistant Health Services Manager, Emergency Department
Thoughtful care for our littlest patients
Funded through the Donald Horne Endowment for Children’s Health, a new neonate warmer is providing a gentler care environment for newborns needing extra support. This specialized bed keeps babies warm while integrating oxygen and breathing monitors into one station, reducing the need to move the baby. With built-in monitoring, a pass-through X-ray tray, an integrated scale, and a mode that supports skin-to-skin bonding, families can stay close while the clinical team provides care – the kind of support Donald Horne would have been proud to provide local families.
“By reducing unnecessary transfers and supporting skin-to-skin care, this equipment improves both medical outcomes and the overall experience for families.”
– Lindsey Patterson, Health Services Manager
A newborn receives care in the neonate warmer
L-R: Amy Brophy, Secretary II, Rehabilitation Services; Titi Odediran, Community Occupational Therapist; Susanne McLean, Community Occupational Therapist.
Helping people stay safe and independent at home
When Nova Scotia Health’s Community Rehabilitation team saw more Pictou County residents unable to afford basic safety equipment, they partnered with the Aberdeen Health Foundation to create the Community Equipment Fund. The $5,000 annual fund helps people access essential items like walkers, commodes, and transfer benches that support safety and independence at home, particularly for seniors and low income residents who do not qualify for existing programs.
“It’s more than equipment. It’s about dignity, safety, and independence for everyone.”
– Titi Odediran, Occupational Therapist
Healthy Libraries – Healthy Communities program
The new Healthy Libraries – Healthy Communities initiative is strengthening the role of local libraries as welcoming, accessible spaces that support connection and wellbeing. In 2025 and 2026, the Foundation committed $130,000 to expand programming across all six Pictou County branches of the Pictou-Antigonish Regional Library, helping reduce social isolation and respond to local community needs.
The investment supports a wide range of programs, from family literacy and cooking workshops to arts programs for people with sight loss, newcomer conversation circles, and social groups built around shared interests. By addressing barriers such as transportation through initiatives like monthly library clubs with door-to-door service, the program helps ensure more residents can take part, reinforcing the important role libraries play in preventative health.
L-R: Eric Stackhouse, PARL Chief Librarian; Nicole LeBlanc, PARL Board Vice Chair; Clyde Fraser, PARL Board Chair; Michelle Ferris, Executive Director, Aberdeen Health Foundation
A simulated primary care scenario is monitored from behind glass at Highland Health Home’s new purpose-built Learning Centre.
A purpose-built space for learning
Located within the new Highland Health Home and Learning Centre, a purpose-built simulation lab is the first in Nova Scotia designed specifically for primary health care. With mannequins and task trainers funded by the Aberdeen Health Foundation, the lab supports hands-on learning that improves clinical skills and patient care, helping attract and retain health care providers by creating a local hub for training and mentorship.
“We wanted to make sure we were creating an environment where people can learn and work together, and right out of the gate the Foundation wanted to have that conversation. It’s not just about training people in their specific skill sets, but about learning how to work together – a skill we’re going to rely on more and more.”
– Dr. Aaron Smith, Medical Executive Director CZ, Nova Scotia Health
Those who shaped our past and those who will guide our future
“There is an intensely committed sense of stewardship at the Foundation. What’s always top of mind is that this is the people of Pictou County’s money.”
– Susan Green, Former Chair
For forty years, the Aberdeen Health Foundation has been guided by volunteer boards who understood their role as both an honour and a responsibility. This has always been a working board. One that asked for time and a willingness to make decisions that would not always be easy, but would always be made in the best interest of the community.
From the earliest days, those invited to serve were people already deeply committed to Pictou County. When concerns were raised that a potential director was already too busy, founding director Jim Gogan would say, “If they’re busy, that’s who we want. People that are busy roll up their sleeves and do the work.” The work mattered, and it required people prepared to engage fully, ask hard questions, and follow through.
“The Foundation reflects the kind of people who live here – people willing to step up and support one another.”
–Susan Green, Former Chair
Over the decades, board members navigated change alongside a shifting health care system. Expanding the Foundation’s focus beyond hospital walls required new thinking and, at times, difficult conversations. It meant holding space for different perspectives while keeping the community’s long-term health
at the centre of every decision.
Just as demanding was the discipline required to protect the Foundation’s original vision. There were moments when needs were urgent and the pressure to spend the protected endowment was real. In those moments, boards past and present understood that stewardship meant balancing today’s needs with the promise made at the outset. Protecting the endowment not only honours that original commitment, it ensures the Foundation can continue to serve Pictou County for generations to come.
“We made a promise to our community that if we raised that money, we would not be coming back to ask again.”
– Susan Malcolm, Former Executive Director
A 1995 capital campaign brochure
As we mark this milestone, we do so with gratitude. The Foundation’s success belongs to every volunteer who has served around the board table, every chair and committee member who carried the weight of stewardship, and every director today who continues that work with care and intention. For forty years, those who have stepped forward have done exactly what was asked of them: they’ve rolled up their sleeves and gotten the work done. The strength of the Foundation is not just in what has been achieved, but in the shared commitment that has sustained it, and will continue to guide it, well into the future.
“The Foundation is indispensable and irreplaceable. You cannot imagine health care in Pictou County today without what it has made possible.”
– Jim Shaw, Former Chair
2025 Funding Commitments
| Capital Projects & Medical Equipment | ||||||||
| Highland Health Home & Learning Centre (Primary Care) | $1,000,000 | |||||||
| Chemistry Analyzers (x2) (Laboratory) | $380,000 | |||||||
| Surgical Services | $717,600 | |||||||
|
||||||||
| TE X Flex Diagnostic Ultrasound | $74,000 | |||||||
| Neonate Warmer (Women & Children’s) | $43,000 | |||||||
| CADD Pumps (x5) (Palliative Care) | $36,500 | |||||||
| Ultrasound Guided Peripheral IV Access (Oncology) | $25,000 | |||||||
| Equipment Under $20,000 (Various Depts) | $70,058 | |||||||
| Capital Projects & Medical Equipment Sub-total | $2,346,158 | |||||||
| Community Health Centre & Other Health Equity Initiatives | $300,000 | |||||||
| FORBOW & Other Mental Health Programs | $126,500 | |||||||
| Healthy Libraries Program (PARL) | $100,000 | |||||||
| Oncology Patient Fund & Other Health Programs | $98,909 | |||||||
| Medical Professional Recruitment | $50,000 | |||||||
| Healthy Schools Program (Public Health) | $40,000 | |||||||
| Continuing Education | $17,222 |
| Grand Total | $3,078,789 |
Want more good news stories?
We’re sharing 40 Facebook posts throughout 2026 that tell the story of the impact community has had on health care in Pictou County.
To mark our 40th anniversary, we launched 40 for 40, a yearlong storytelling series highlighting moments, investments, and people who have shaped local health over the past four decades.
Follow along on Facebook
facebook.com/AberdeenHealthFoundation
Browse stories
aberdeenhealthfoundation.ca/news
Annual General Meeting
Join us to celebrate 40 years.
Help us mark four decades of community generosity and local impact. At this special 40th anniversary AGM, we’ll look back on our history, celebrate this year’s progress, and look ahead to the future we’re building together.
March 26, 2026 @ 6:30 pm, Summer Street Industries
or online: aberdeenhealthfoundation.ca/AGM2026
In the event of inclement weather, the meeting will be held online only.
