Living Well - Summer 2015 - Beaufort - (Page 54)

FOUNDATION-BUILDING MEET PAUL MANNHEIM Steady golfer, steady advocate You never know what you're going to ﬁnd on the golf course. In Paul Mannheim's case, it was a nomination to the board of his community hospital in Northampton, Mass. He confesses that until that "golf course" moment in 1988, he hadn't thought much about healthcare and not a bit about what goes into running a nonproﬁt hospital. But he accepted the nomination and embarked on a steep learning curve. During his 12 years on the board, he served on so many committees that his wife, Sue, nicknamed him "Mr. Meetings." He developed a real commitment to the hospital and found satisfying his eﬀorts on its behalf. A Continued Calling When the couple retired to Dataw in 2000, Mannheim found an outlet for his commitment in his new community hospital: Beaufort Memorial. One of the ﬁrst things he did after relocating was volunteer to help at the front desk. For 13 years now, he's spent his Mondays providing hospital visitors with directions, answering phones and wheeling discharged patients from their rooms to waiting cars. Mannheim really enjoys chatting with everyone who comes and goes, helping out wherever he can. Early on, so devoted was Mannheim in his service to the hospital that he caught 54 SU M M ER 2015 "Hospitals are so important to the community, so I like to help out wherever I can," says the dedicated Foundation Board member. the eye of its CEO, who asked him to help out in other ways. He started with a Valentine Ball Committee, and it wasn't long before he joined the Foundation Board and was elected its treasurer. He represents the Foundation on the hospital's Strategic Planning Committee as well. "Mr. Meetings" is back in force! Setting an Example The Mannheims have found other ways to serve and support the hospital, too. They are members of Beaufort Memorial's Kate Gleason (legacy) Society, and they've long been generous contributors. "Paul truly 'walks the walk,' " according to Foundation Executive Director Alice Moss. "With 15 years of volunteering and 10 years on the Foundation Board to his credit, he has become an important face of Beaufort Memorial. You can feel his passion for doing all he can to help the hospital." From his unique vantage point, Mannheim sees many parallels between the two hospitals on whose boards he's served. Both provide an impressive array of services. Both are nonproﬁts, receiving no state or local support, and both rely heavily on donations from the community to carry out their mission. In addition, both have recently aﬃliated with strong neighboring teaching hospitals in an eﬀort to further secure their future (Mannheim was happy to see BMH follow this trend in healthcare by partnering with Charleston's Medical University of South Carolina). He constantly seeks opportunities to spread the word about all that Beaufort Memorial is doing and achieving for its community, hoping to inspire others to join him and his wife in supporting the hospital. Mannheim remembers how he himself once took his community hospital for granted. It took that chance meeting on the golf course 25 years ago to open his eyes to all that was being accomplished, and especially to all the help that was needed. Golf, anyone? I

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Living Well - Summer 2015 - Beaufort