Who We Are
Lutheran Hospital Foundation is a Colorado 501c3 public nonprofit that partners with individuals, businesses, grant-makers, physicians, and the community to achieve its mission of building philanthropic support for not-for-profit Lutheran Medical Center and all of its affiliated services, including Lutheran Hospice at the Collier Hospice Center and West Pines Behavioral Health.
Our vision is to provide for the changing healthcare needs of our community by building state-of-the-art facilities, developing innovative care models, and ensuring every patient has access to world-class care. Our Foundation turns good healthcare into exceptional healthcare by enabling Lutheran’s staff to exceed the expectations of the people we serve.
History
At the start of the 20th Century, Denver’s population was booming, with residents spreading across the plains to develop agriculture, mining, manufacturing, and more. As the settlement grew, however, so did the need for medical care.
In 1905, congregants from St. John’s Lutheran Church in Denver rallied to the cause of opening a tuberculosis sanitarium to care for the city’s residents and visitors. They raised just over $15,000 to purchase 20 acres of land in Wheat Ridge, a few miles west of Denver. The property had two structures: a two-story farmhouse and a five-room cottage. Patients arrived almost immediately to benefit from the dry, cool air of Colorado’s high plains at the new Evangelical Lutheran Sanitarium.
Over the last 100+ years, the Sanitarium has evolved into Lutheran Medical Center. While the hospital still occupies its original 20-acre parcel, and the farmhouse still stands, today’s campus and its affiliated care sites include an acute care hospital, an accredited hospice and palliative program, behavioral health, and addiction services.
Each year, Lutheran’s staff and physicians deliver approximately 2,000 babies, provide inpatient care for 17,000 individuals and emergency services to 70,000 neighbors, and treat 170,000 people with high-quality outpatient service. Lutheran Medical Center, a member of SCL Health, was recognized by Healthgrades in 2018 as one of America’s Top 50 Best Hospitals, making Lutheran among the top one percent of more than 4,500 hospitals assessed nationwide.
In 2007, Lutheran Medical Center Foundation incorporated as a 501c3 and assumed full responsibility for all fundraising for Lutheran. At the same time, Community First Foundation, Lutheran’s fundraising entity from 1975 to 2007, broadened its reach as a community foundation and, as of 2013, ended its governance role in SCL Health.
Today, Lutheran Hospital Foundation generates resources to support care and services at Lutheran Medical Center and is well positioned to assist individuals and corporations with charitable giving to benefit our community.
Annual Report
2022 was a year of outstanding generosity and continued excitement surrounding the New Replacement Lutheran Hospital. The Lutheran Hospital Foundation’s Legacy Continues Comprehensive Campaign achieved 79% of its goal of $12M! We are grateful to our donors for this wonderful support and thank you for being involved in healthcare in our community.
Other first milestones in 2022 for the Lutheran Hospital Foundation include:
- Generating $5.9M in fundraising revenue, which is 189% of the budgeted goal
- Showing a Return on Investment of $8.15 for every dollar expensed
- Expenses for the LMC Foundation were held to spending only 71% of budget
- The fifth Chip in Fore Lutheran Golf Tournament raised $123,522
We are proud to have invested more than $1.5M to support many wonderful projects at Lutheran in 2022 including:
- The Code Caring Program, which provides resiliency support to care workers
- Funding to support educational opportunities for clinicians
- Oncology service line support
- Humanitarian assistance to patients who are discharged from the hospital and in need of resources such as transportation, medication, and food
- Hospice and palliative care support
- Meals for discharged postpartum families
- Installation of safety equipment and upgrades to the West Pines facility
As we look to the future of healthcare in Wheat Ridge and surrounding communities, we are excited to continue our work and thrilled to share what will be possible for caregivers and patients in a new, state-of-the-art facility. You can learn more about the new, replacement Lutheran Medical Center by visiting TheLutheranLegacy.org. Please sign up for our e-newsletter to receive ongoing information about our bright future.