Each year, the WakeMed Foundation’s Community Campaign offers an opportunity to support hospital programs and services. We chatted with Chris Bell, Middle Market Banking Manager for the Triangle Region at Truist, to talk about why serving WakeMed matters.
In the fight against Covid-19, the Triangle community has banded together to support relief efforts. The effort has been extraordinary thanks in large part to organizations like Truist. “When this pandemic hit, Truist committed $50 million to provide communities, organizations, and individuals disaster relief and assistance during the COVID-19 crisis,” says Chris Bell, a leader at Truist.
Truist and WakeMed Health & Hospitals share a common goal: enriching the Triangle community. “At Truist, our purpose is to inspire and build better lives and communities,” Chris says. In turn, the company and the foundation look to support organizations that stand out for positive impact in and on the community. “WakeMed has a positive impact in terms of healthcare as well as the services and the resources they provide. They are truly making a difference in our community.”
Truist’s Pledge
In 2020, Truist announced a generous Truist Cares grant to support telemedicine programs in area homeless shelters. Truist Cares is a cooperative effort between Truist Financial Corporation, Truist Foundation, Inc., and Truist Charitable Fund. “WakeMed’s telemedicine program 100% serves low-to-moderate income individuals. WakeMed does a great job providing healthcare to our entire area, and most importantly to those who are underserved.”
“The goal is to reduce emergency room visits to allow for more rapid response to those with the most urgent needs,” Chris says. “Using technology to connect people to resources — in banking or in telemedicine — is often a convenient and fast way to serve people and provide the services they need.”
Personal and Community-Focused
Chris has been involved with the WakeMed Foundation on a personal level for years, inspired by its excellent care and leadership. “Having been there as a patient myself in the past, I know the level of personalized healthcare is special,” Chris says. “Just as impressive is their role as a community leader. WakeMed is heavily involved in the community at large and their leadership really stands out.”
About Chris Bell
Chris Bell is Middle Market Banking Manager for the Triangle Region at SunTrust now Truist. He has been involved with WakeMed for many years in various volunteer roles and at WakeMed Foundation annual events. On a corporate level, both SunTrust Bank and BB&T, now merged as Truist, have a long history of supporting WakeMed. Truist recently provided a generous grant to support telemedicine technology to Triangle area homeless shelters in the wake of Covid-19.
What is the Community Campaign?
Each year, the WakeMed Foundation Community Campaign offers an opportunity for the community — for you — to support hospital programs and services. Foundation board members and volunteers raise donations and sponsorships of every amount from existing and new donors. One hundred percent of donated dollars go directly to fund programs and services to support patient care in all areas of the hospital. Creating healing environments. Providing innovative programs. Investing in skilled and compassionate caregivers. Supporting the urgent needs of our patients and families. Donations make it all possible. Your gift truly helps save and transform lives. Make a gift now.
