Baptist Health Care Foundation

03/20/2026

The Baptist Laboratory team received a Helping Hands Mini-Grant to purchase Baptist-branded shirts and jackets from the swag store for their courier teams.

“For us, this project had a ripple effect! The anticipated outcome was far greater than expected.

Our couriers are out in the community every day. They are the front line of representation. The expressions on the faces of these team members as we gave them their Baptist-branded shirts and jackets was more than we could have hoped for. There was a whole new sense of pride in the representation and a closer sense of team. It was a boost in morale of epic proportions. There is something special about wearing the Baptist logo that lets the community know that you are a part of something bigger, something greater than all of us. You are a part of a “Community of Caring.”

The other aspect of this project was a sense of safety. Not only from a facilities perspective but also that of a patient. In this world that we live in, you must put yourself in the position of a patient or facility team member seeing a person in plain clothes entering the facility, whether delivering or receiving specimens. From appearances, it can be cause for concern. Wearing the Baptist logo automatically announces the arrival of someone that belongs there — a professional, someone that has a job to fulfill, and that they are “safe” to be there.

Not only did this project hit the mark with our Mission of team, community and caring, it provided professional appearance, improved recognition and trust at partner sites and reinforced the hospital’s commitment to security, safety and service quality. And lastly, this project showed our couriers that we value them. They are a huge part of what makes us better and their hard work and efforts don’t go unnoticed.”

Submitted by Stacy V. Paun, Laboratory Services Coordinator

03/18/2026

🌟 Women's Board Wednesday 🌟

The Foundation welcomes Cherie Meguess, Vice President of Individual and Senior Markets at Torgersen Consulting Insurance & Benefits, as our new President of the Women's Board!

Learn more about Cherie and the Women's Board on our website: https://www.baptisthealthcarefoundation.org/WBProfiles/cherie-meguess-president

03/16/2026

Ricky Fretwell, Baptist clinical education instructor, visited San Salvador, El Salvador on a mission trip in February 2026. Ricky and the mission team began building a church for the local community in a remote location near Rio Lempa River. The team worked on constructing the outside walls and was nearly halfway finished by the end of the trip. Construction will continue throughout the year with help from the local paster and community.

“The project is very special to that community because it brings great opportunity for people to gather and worship in a place that is not currently available. The church, once constructed, will also do outreach for the children in the community and help with small projects for the locals. The pastor and his family are from the area and felt led by the lord to have a church there. With no funding or help, they were mocked by the locals. They prayed and went to work.

They began by selling baked goods locally in the market. They stayed focused and prayed. They saved enough money for a down payment for the piece of property that the church sits on. A local donated a cow that was sold at market, and another person donated a tractor that was sold to help with funding for the rest of the property and clearing of the dirt work. They continued to make impacts in the community, and everyone could see the project coming together. Now the project is underway, and they are gaining more respect from the locals. The projected finish date is the end of the year. They have enough money donated to finish the walls and roof.

Thank you to the Baptist Health Care Foundation for the contribution to help with this project and the impact that it's going to have on the people there.”

Through the Foundation's Helping Hands team member giving program, team members can apply for financial assistance to support domestic or foreign mission trips. We are grateful to be able to support the impact Ricky made on his mission trip.

03/12/2026

Baptist external relations team is enjoying the University of West Florida Women in Leadership Conference today. 💙

03/11/2026

Thanks to generous funding from the Scottish Rite Foundation of Florida, Baptist Medical Group audiology clinic installed new Visual Reinforcement Audiology (VRA) equipment to strengthen our pediatric service.

This upgraded technology will allow our team to attain more accurate hearing results efficiently by introducing auditory and visual stimuli into the test. The equipment is primarily utilized to acquire responses from children under the age of 4 and children on the autism spectrum.

By improving the reliability of early hearing assessments, our audiologists can continue to deliver high-quality, developmentally appropriate care for the children we serve.

03/06/2026

03/05/2026

Such a fantastic turnout for our first Women’s Board Quarterly Meeting! Thank you to Dr. Joy Powell for providing an overview of Baptist’s Faith Health Network.

To learn more about the Women’s Board or to join, visit https://www.baptisthealthcarefoundation.org/womens-board.

02/25/2026

Congratulations to the recipients of the Greater Pensacola Chamber’s 2026 PACE Awards, including Baptist’s KC Gartman and Bobby Potomski and Foundaion board member Lewis Bear, III. 💙

Last night, the Greater Pensacola Chamber of Commerce held its annual Pensacola Area Commitment to Excellence (PACE) Awards at the Pensacola Beach Hilton. Sue Straughn from WEAR-TV Channel 3 once again served as emcee.

We were privileged to honor the following individuals who have done so much for the Greater Pensacola community:

Emerging Leader: Bobby Potomski, Baptist Health Care
Advocate Leader: Alicia Tappan, Survivor Led Solutions
Business Leader: Rick Byars, Florida Power and Light
Community Leader: KC Gartman, Baptist Health Care
Professional Leader: Cyndi Warren, Warren Averett
Leader in Education: Dr. Martha Saunders, University of West Florida
Spirit of Pensacola: Lewis Bear III, Lewis Bear Company
Pioneer Award: Escambia County Sheriff Chip Simmons

“The PACE Awards shine a well-deserved spotlight on the leaders whose vision and dedication continue to strengthen the Greater Pensacola region,” stated Greater Pensacola Chamber Board Chair Ildi Hosman. “Their commitment to innovation, business growth, and community impact reflects the momentum of our business community and the bright future ahead. This year’s slate of honorees is a testament to the purpose-driven work being done in our community.”

The Greater Pensacola Chamber of Commerce would like to thank our 66th Annual PACE Award sponsors for their generous support.
Gold Sponsors: Florida Power & Light, CareerSource Escarosa, and the Pensacola News Journal

Award Sponsors: Ascension Sacred Heart, Baptist Health Care, Cox, Florida Blue, Frazier & Deeter, International Paper, Landrum HR, and the University of West Florida

VIP Reception Sponsor: Cat Country 98.7 / NewsRadio 92.3
Wine Sponsor: OneDigital

And a special thanks to Aaron Ball and Mediatech Direct for the amazing videos.

Congratulations to all the winners!

02/24/2026

Thank you to Edward Jones - Financial Advisor: Jacey J. Cosentino for highlighting the Foundation!

✨ Community Charity Spotlight ✨

Recently, the Baptist Health Care Foundation celebrated 50 years of serving our community (Aug. 13, 2025). Since its founding, the Foundation has played a vital role in elevating compassionate care, expanding services, improving technology and strengthening Baptist’s organizational Mission of helping people throughout life’s journey.

Every gift, no matter the size, makes a difference. The Foundation’s legacy is deeply rooted in the spirit of our community and team members whose contributions over the years have totaled more than $75 million. One hundred percent of donations to the Foundation support Baptist’s programs, services and initiatives to ensure community members have the very best care at every stage of life.

The Cosentino Wealth Management Team proudly supports local charities and organizations and believes in staying actively involved in our community. We’re grateful for organizations like this that invest right back into the health and well-being of our neighbors. 💙

02/23/2026

Baptist Health Care’s Serve Team assembled bags of feminine hygiene products to be distributed to four churches within the Baptist Faith Health Network that operate schools.

Thank you to the Women’s Board of the Foundation for collecting and donating items for the project! 💙

02/19/2026

Congratulations to all the community leaders and Foundation donors, including our board members Mike Morette and Lewis Bear III, for their inclusion in InWeekly's 2026 Power List!

2026 Inweekly Power List

02/14/2026

Grateful for the hearts that make our community stronger every day. Happy Valentine’s Day from the Foundation team!