To the editor:
Friends Medical Support Fund, a local nonprofit organization, has been helping our neighbors on South Whidbey with medical expenses since 1997.
In our first year, we helped 10 people with $3,592 in medical expenses. In 2009 we helped 235 people with $82,000 worth of expenses. Clearly there is a need for our organization.
Funds are raised in our local community, mostly through individual donations. We are grateful for donations from civic organizations, churches and the Whidbey General Hospital Foundation. It is our job to be good stewards of these funds.
In the beginning, our founder, Lynn Willeford, took calls from her home phone number. We now employ a part-time paid service coordinator to authorize services. We are a temporary safety net, and have helped hundreds of individuals. Most people need our help for only a short time.
Since 1997, Friends of Friends has been a conduit for donations, paying more than $600,000 in medical and dental expenses.
Our low overhead allows donations to go where they are intended.
Whidbey Telecom provides our voice mailbox, 221-4535, as well as Web hosting. Call that number, and our service coordinator will return the call.
Our Web site, www.fofmedicalsupportfund.org is a place to find information about community resources as well as photos and information about us. Donations can be made to us via this site.
The generosity of a local South Whidbey resident allowed us to look to the future to create an endowment fund. We are tremendously proud to have helped two other organizations get established on the island. Small Miracles is located in Coupeville and Medical Safety Net of North Whidbey is in Oak Harbor.
Our thanks to all who have donated to us in the past and who continue to support us. Already this year, we have helped 56 South Whidbey residents.
The need for assistance with medical bills continues. We hope to see you at our Mother’s Day Plant Sale on May 8 at Tilth. Mr. South Whidbey 2010 will be crowned on Oct. 2.
You may also contact us at our mailing address, PO Box 812, Langley, WA 98260.
Claudia Fuller
Past President
Friends of Friends Medical Support Fund
