Message from St. Joseph's Hospital: Your Trust Is Important to Us

Since 2003, the Health & Wealth Raffle has consistently given Arizonans a reason to dream of winning exciting prizes. There’s a 1-in-18 chance of winning, and as always, your participation in the Raffle is a great way to help St. Joseph’s Hospital and Barrow Neurological Institute stay at the cutting-edge of patient care, medical education, and research.

Mary Jane Crist, CEO of St. Joseph’s Foundation and Barrow Neurological Foundation, can assure you that the Raffle team, headed by manager Kathy Rice, has worked hard to build credibility for the novel fundraising approach. The Raffle, she says, has always abided by the following standards:

• Each Health & Wealth Raffle clearly identifies all prizes that will be given away, and every prize is awarded.
• Prizes and services are purchased in Arizona wherever possible so that the Raffle benefits the local economy.
• The Raffle does not conduct telemarketing or cold-calling.
• Ticket prices are clearly defined at the beginning of each Raffle and do not change during the course of the Raffle.
• Customer satisfaction is a primary goal of the Health & Wealth Raffle. Calls to the Call Center and the Customer Service Line, and emails to the Raffle website are answered within two business days.

As of late, other raffles are entering the market, and the Health & Wealth Raffle faces a new challenge: People confusing the Health & Wealth Raffle with other raffles. If you have any questions or concerns, we urge you to call the Health & Wealth Raffle Customer Service Line at
1-888-270-6955 or email us at Response@HealthWealthRaffle.org.

Your trust is important to us.

Thank you for your continued support. 

St. Joseph’s Hospital Treats Newborn with Congenital Heart Defect

Raffle funds help support life-saving procedure at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Barrow Neurological Institute.

Eight months ago, a day filled with joy turned into a nightmare for Amber and Alex Kahoun when the Queen Creek couple learned that their newborn son, Asher, had a life-threatening heart problem.

Shortly after Asher’s birth on April 1, 2008, a cardiologist at Chandler Regional Medical Center discovered the infant had a serious heart defect and needed immediate specialized care. Minutes later, Asher was on a helicopter headed for the Scott and Laura Eller Congenital Heart Center at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center.

Pediatric heart specialists determined that Asher had a transposition of the great arteries, a congenital heart defect in which the aorta and pulmonary artery are reversed, starving the body of essential oxygen. Surgeons operated on the baby’s tiny heart when he was just three hours old.

Today, Asher is thriving. He weighs more than 20 pounds and is constantly on the move, says his mother, Amber. “He’s pretty much a normal little boy, other than his little chest scar. I can’t express how grateful we are to St. Joseph’s. If Asher had been born 10-15 years ago, he wouldn’t have made it. Now the doctors say he’ll have a good, full, long life.”

Dollars from the Health & Wealth Raffle helped St. Joseph’s Hospital recruit a top-notch team of pediatric heart specialists and establish the Scott and Laura Eller Congenital Heart Center.

Woman Gives Thanks for the Chance to Live a Normal Life

Raffle funds help support life-altering lung transplant program at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Barrow Neurological Institute.

For Allison Stokes, a double lung transplant in April 2008 brought a difficult chapter of her life to a close. Since birth, the Phoenix woman had struggled with severe bronchial problems caused by Kartagener syndrome, a rare genetic disorder. Kartagener syndrome causes a defect in the microscopic hairs that line the respiratory tract and that normally clear mucus from the lungs.

Throughout her life, Stokes was in and out of the hospital with severe breathing problems. By the time she was in her 30s, she was using oxygen, and a year prior to her surgery, the mother of two was exhausted to the point that she could not work, cook, or participate in her children’s activities.

Thanksgiving 2008 was truly a time of giving thanks for all she now has, Stokes said. She was able to host her family’s get-together in her own home for the first time.

“I’m very grateful for the chance to live,” said Stokes. “For me, it’s not a second chance at life—it’s really a first chance to live a normal life. I’m looking forward to watching my son graduate and my daughter grow up.”

Your support of the Health & Wealth Raffle helped St. Joseph’s Hospital recruit a team of nationally recognized lung-transplant specialists. The lung transplant program has provided 21 fortunate people with life-saving transplants since April 2007.

St. Joseph’s Named the
Best Place to Work

In December 2008, St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center was named #1 in the extra-large category of the “Best Places to Work” in the Valley by The Business Journal of Phoenix. St. Joseph’s is the only hospital in Phoenix to be named to the “Best Places” list for six consecutive years.

The “Best Places to Work” awards are based entirely on employee feedback.

“This is a tremendous honor, and I am so grateful to our employees,” says Linda Hunt, president of St. Joseph’s. “Our people are the backbone of this organization; they put our mission into action, and they create the environment that makes this a great place to work.”

In November, St. Joseph’s was recognized as one of the best places to work by yet a second Valley publication, Phoenix Magazine. The magazine’s cover story featured 21 of “the best places to earn your paycheck in the Valley.” St. Joseph’s made the list, along with the Arizona Diamondbacks, SRP, Bashas’, Go Daddy, and Kitchell.

Gilbert Woman Comes out a BIG Winner in the Appreciation Draw

Jane Purse wins BMW plus $10,000 in the Spring 2009 Health & Wealth Raffle

Retiree Jane Purse, 64, had been experiencing stomach and chest pains on and off for six months. “I just ignored the signs,” said Purse. “I thought the pain would eventually go away.”

After several episodes, her husband finally talked her into going to St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center for a check-up in November 2007. This would be the Purses' first visit to St. Joseph’s and a memorable one at that.

Purse was diagnosed with paraesophageal hiatal hernia. The upper part of her stomach had pushed through an opening in her diaphragm and up into her chest.
Shortly after being diagnosed, Purse underwent major surgery. A week later, she was released from the hospital and made a full recovery.

“The experience was terrific,” Purse said. “St. Joseph’s basically saved my life!”

After her incredible experience at St. Joseph’s, Purse wanted to find a way to give back to the hospital for the amazing care she had received. One day, Purse heard a commercial on the radio about the Health & Wealth Raffle and how all proceeds benefit St. Joseph’s and Barrow Neurological Institute. Once Purse heard of the fundraiser, she wanted to get involved right away.

“I thought buying a raffle ticket is the least I could do to repay St. Joseph’s for saving my life,” said Purse.

Since November 2007, Jane has entered the Health & Wealth Raffle three times but has only won small prizes. In the Spring 2009 Raffle she bought a 3-pack and won a 2009 BMW 128 Coupe plus $10,000 in cash. When Purse called her husband to tell him the good news, he said “I always knew you were lucky.”  Jane and her husband aren’t sure what they will do with their winnings, but they will continue to enter future Raffles to support St. Joseph’s and Barrow.

Avid Philanthropist Wins Big

Phoenix resident Kathie Remick wins top prize in
Fall 2008 Health & Wealth Raffle

Local school teacher, Kathie Remick, dedicates her time to helping others by volunteering at nonprofit organizations throughout the Valley. Last fall, she purchased a Health & Wealth Raffle ticket to support St. Joseph’s Hospital and Barrow Neurological Institute. Little did Remick know, that ticket was about to make her the Grand Prize winner of the Health & Wealth Raffle.

Her story
Remick had been awake since 4:30 a.m. preparing for a large family get-together taking place later that evening. She and her husband, Bill, were about to sit down for lunch when Remick received the news from Kathy Rice, manager of the Health and Wealth Raffle, that she was the $1 million Grand Prize winner.

“I was in complete shock when I got the news,” said Remick. “I was assured it was not a prank call, but it was very difficult to believe at first. I never dreamed of winning anything this big!”

Her future
The first thing Remick plans to do with her winnings is help her brother by paying off his mortgage. Remick’s brother suffers from degenerative disc disease and has twice undergone surgery. Currently, he has a titanium rod in his back and is constantly in pain. With Remick’s winnings, she hopes to relieve the financial burden for her brother and his family.

When Remick told her brother of her plans to pay off his mortgage, he protested and said he would be fine. She responded, “Well, now you are going to be better!”

Remick also plans to assist her mom and dad, who live in Sun City, with a few remodeling projects and to take her mom on a dream trip to Italy.

Thank You

By participating in the Health & Wealth Raffle, you’re helping St. Joseph’s Hospital, Barrow Neurological Institute, and Arizona stay at the forefront of medical care. Raffle proceeds are invested in innovative medical research, education, and patient care. 

Last year, more than 41,000 patients were admitted to our hospital. Approximately 70,000 patients visited our Emergency Department, and nearly 430,000 patients visited us on an outpatient basis. Funding from the Raffle helped provide the specialized care and services that many of these patients needed.

Together, we are making one of the nation’s finest medical institutions even better – and that’s good for us all!

Linda Hunt
President, St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center