Stark Family Fund 2010 Recipients

Foundation Announces Recipients of the 2010 Stark Family Fund Grants Program

The Community Foundation of Kingston & Area is pleased to announce the recipients of grants from the Stark Family Fund for 2010. Established by a generous bequest from the late Stark family, the Fund supports initiatives and scholarships in Prince Edward County, and specifically Bloomfield, where the family lived and was well-known. This year, a total of $27,750 was granted. As in the past, the Rotary Club of Picton received $5,750 to distribute scholarships to five PEC students enrolled in accredited post-secondary programs. The Wellington Arena Replacement Project received $5,000, and the Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Foundation $17,000 for a new ECG machine. 

Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Foundation: ECG Machine

The Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Foundation was the grateful recipient of a $17,000.00 grant from the Stark Family Fund on June 30, 2010. The grant money will be used to purchase an Electrocardiograph (ECG) machine for our Hospital.

An ECG (also EKG or electrocardiograph) machine works by detecting and amplifying the tiny electrical changes on the skin that are caused when the heart muscle "depolarizes" during each heartbeat. The ECG is the most commonly performed cardiac test. This is because the ECG is a useful screening tool for a variety of cardiac abnormalities. An ECG is the best way to measure and diagnose abnormal rhythms of the heart, particularly abnormal rhythms caused by damage to the conductive tissue that carries electrical signals, or abnormal rhythms caused by electrolyte imbalances. In a heart attack (or myocardial infarction) the ECG can identify if the heart muscle has been damaged in specific areas, though not all areas of the heart are covered. Everyone who comes into the Hospital with any kind of chest pain or shortness of breath can benefit from an ECG to help in making the diagnosis of a serious cause of the symptoms.
Established in 2003 by a $1.3 million bequest entrusted to the Community Foundation for Kingston & Area by Ruth Stark of the Stark Family of Bloomfield, Ontario, this fund supports projects in Prince Edward County. Grant applications from this fund are administered by a grant selection committee, chaired by Tim and Linda Beatty from Prince Edward County. The PECMH Foundation is pleased to be among this year’s recipients.

Briar Boyce, Quinte Health Care

Pictured here back row, from left are Ryan, Kyle and Tim Beatty, Don Stanton, president of the PECMH Foundation, Larry Matheson, vice president of the PECMH Foundation, Vikram Varma, executive director of the Community Foundation for Kingston & Area. Front row, from left are Anna Marie Ferguson, executive director of the PECMH Foundation and Linda Beatty.

Wellington Arena Replacement Project

The Wellington Arena Replacement Project received a $5,000 grant from the Stark Family Fund, held within the Community Foundation for Kingston & Area.

The Wellington & District Community Centre, originally built in 1948 and then rebuilt in 1974, is experiencing an ongoing series of repair and renewal requirements which make it no longer viable to operate. A comprehensive review was completed in 2007, and Council determined that it would be more cost effective to invest in a new facility rather than renewing the existing one.

The new $12 million, fully accessible recreational sports complex, for which construction got underway in August of 2009, will support organized, competitive, and amateur athletics. Expected to open December 2010, the new facility will include an indoor walking track, a multipurpose exercise space, a large community hall, and office spaces for major sports groups to support expansion of service and athleticism in the community. This facility will have the capacity to be used by all residents of Prince Edward County, adults, children, families and seniors alike.