Superhero Ball brings communities together to raise funds for Geisinger Janet Weis Children’s Hospital’s 25th anniversary
DANVILLE, Pa. – The community has contributed to one of the most successful Geisinger fundraising events, raising more than $500,000 for the continued support and advancement of Geisinger Janet Weis Children’s Hospital to celebrate its 25th anniversary.
The community, businesses and Geisinger leadership attended the Superhero Ball at the Pine Barn Inn on Sept.14 to celebrate one of the country’s first rural acute-care children’s hospitals.
“Geisinger Janet Weis Children’s Hospital has been bringing specialized care to our community for 25 years,” said Jaewon Ryu, M.D., J.D., Geisinger’s president and CEO. “People are able to get specialty pediatric care here without having to go to Philadelphia, Pittsburgh or other places. Bringing care closer to the community, of course, makes health easier for our patients.”
The 91-bed children’s hospital, which turns 25 on Dec. 14, offers services including a neonatal intensive care unit, a range of specialty pediatric services and a pediatric intensive care unit.
“Geisinger Janet Weis Children’s Hospital is an integral part of our community. Geisinger Pediatrics strives to keep our children safe and well throughout central and northeast Pennsylvania. When children require hospitalization, our children’s hospital provides outstanding advanced care while keeping children and families close to home,” said Frank A. Maffei, M.D., Geisinger’s chair of pediatrics. “We are indebted to our community partners for their support in our first 25 years and look forward to continued service and success in our next 25 years.”
Unveiled during the celebration was an original children’s book, “The Courage Cape,” featuring Geisinger Janet Weis Children’s Hospital. Dedicated to Michael Ryan, D.O., senior vice president of development with the Geisinger Health Foundation and longtime leader in Geisinger’s pediatric program, the book was written by Brigitte Henry Cooper and illustrated by Bethany and Olivia Moy. The book will be given to each patient admitted to the children’s hospital over this next year.
“Our children are our future, and we are dedicated to providing them with the specialized treatments and services they need and deserve,” said Nancy Lawton Kluck, Geisinger’s chief philanthropy officer. “I want to thank all of our sponsors and community for their generosity these past 25 years and for driving us toward the next 25 years of care. I especially want to recognize the generosity and vision of the Weis family, whose dedication brought this special place to our region.”
In the past 25 years, the Geisinger Janet Weis Children's Hospital has achieved the following milestones:
- Provided inpatient pediatric care to more than 125,000 children between 1994 and 2019 in private rooms that include accommodations for parents
- Provided outpatient pediatric care to more than 3 million children between 1994 and 2019
- Trained more than 250 future pediatricians as pediatric residents
- Quadrupled the number of primary pediatric providers in our region from 50 in 1994 to more than 200 in 2019
- Increased the number of pediatric specialists and pediatric surgical providers from 20 to more than 150
- Developed a world-class pediatric trauma program
- Began its Pediatric Emergency Medicine Program in 2016
- Began its Pediatric Palliative Care Program in 2017
About Geisinger
Geisinger is among the nation’s leading providers of value-based care, serving 1.2 million people in urban and rural communities across Pennsylvania. Founded in 1915 by philanthropist Abigail Geisinger, the non-profit system generates $10 billion in annual revenues across 134 care sites - including 10 hospital campuses, and Geisinger Health Plan, with 600,000 members in commercial and government plans. The Geisinger College of Health Sciences educates more than 5,000 medical professionals annually and conducts more than 1,400 clinical research studies. With 26,000 employees, including 1,600 employed physicians, Geisinger is among Pennsylvania’s largest employers with an estimated economic impact of $14 billion to the state’s economy. On March 31, 2024, Geisinger became the first member of Risant Health, a new nonprofit charitable organization created to expand and accelerate value-based care across the country. Learn more at geisinger.org or connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and X.
