Marshall B. Ketchum University Announces a Major Gift to Establish the Forester-Chia Radiology Room at the Ketchum Health Medical Clinic
There are some relationships between people that grow so naturally that they seem designed for each other from the start. When circumstances align to bring together hearts full of generosity on one side with the needs of an institution on the other, it is a privilege to witness how both thrive in purpose and delight. This benevolent manner of relationship has formed between Marshall B. Ketchum University and Denny Chia and Lynn Forester-Chia, a husband and wife who partner together in business and philanthropy.
The passion Denny and Lynn have for giving back has in a very short time resulted in the funding of a number of student scholarships for the School of PA Studies, special enrichment for MBKU faculty, staff and students, and, perhaps most excitingly, a major donation that will provide a brand-new radiology room for the Ketchum Health Medical Clinic.
“The Forester-Chia Radiology Room will really change the face of the clinic for us at Ketchum Health,” says Joan Rubio, Vice President for University Advancement. “It will allow us to expand our outreach to the community, as there is a lot of demand for this service. It will reposition the clinic and put us in place we haven’t been, in addition to expanding the scope of rotations for our students in that clinic. This is a truly transformational gift.”
A FORTUITOUS MOMENT
A large part of Denny and Lynn’s enthusiasm for giving to MBKU is due to the way that the University’s mission of educating compassionate health care professionals aligns with Denny and Lynn’s long history of experiencing the vagaries of receiving medical care in America. MBKU first came to their attention almost providentially. Denny and Lynn were speaking to Denny’s doctor, during his routine physical, when Denny noticed the doctor’s lab coat had a logo for MBKU on the chest. He asked about it and discovered his practitioner, Dr. Daniel L. May, in addition to being a caring and exceptional provider of health care, was also a Board Trustee, longtime faculty member, and the Medical Director for the School of PA Studies at MBKU.
As a longstanding part of the MBKU family, Dr. May spoke to Denny and Lynn with enthusiasm about the University, its mission, its successes, and its continual need for financial support. It is not an overstatement to say that, as a result of that conversation, Denny and Lynn found a new calling.
“There’s a Chinese saying that is difficult to translate into English exactly,” says Denny. “But it roughly means something like, ‘To give to others is the fundamental happiness.’ This is how Lynn and I feel now. Giving to others makes us very, very happy. It’s an amazing feeling. I have a small company, and when people get to my age, they often think about retiring. Well, I wake up in the morning now and I feel like I will do my best for my company so I can do more for MBKU!”
SPREADING GRATITUDE
Like so many others who live generously, Denny and Lynn also feel compelled by gratitude, particularly as it relates to funding student scholarships and improving access to family health care. The deep familiarity of all the complexities involved with receiving medical care has given Lynn and Denny a burning desire to ease those complexities for others.
When Dr. May and Joan Rubio first invited Denny and Lynn to get more familiar with MBKU, they attended a commencement ceremony and were deeply moved by the family atmosphere MBKU is famous for, as well as the deep sense that they were witnessing a group of leaders on the cusp of great things. “Commencement brought tears to our eyes,” says Denny. “To see all these students who are going to graduate, and then right away they’ll take their board exams, and right away start contributing to society. It was very, very touching.”
AN EAGER GIFT
Motivated by a calling to do whatever they could to support the education of caring health care providers, Lynn and Denny were made aware of the need for a radiology room at the Family Health Clinic at Ketchum Health, and how that capability would expand the services the clinic could provide to the community. Knowing that these services are needed sooner rather than later, they decided to donate the entire cost of a new radiology room at Ketchum Health. With this gift, not only will Orange County have another point of access for this vital medical service, but MBKU students will benefit as their learning expands to encompass the new treatments the clinic will be able to provide.
“The MBKU community and I are so grateful for the generosity of Lynn and Denny,” says MBKU President Julie A. Schornack, OD, MEd. “Working with such enthusiastic and kind-hearted individuals to determine a place where their gift could have a truly lasting impact was such a pleasure, and I am so excited to see the effects this new facility will have on the Ketchum Health Family Medicine Clinic and the surrounding community.”
As honored as Denny and Lynn are by the opportunity to provide such a substantial enhancement of MBKU’s medical facilities at Ketchum Health, they are also very clear that they’re not done giving. With an appreciation for all that they have received and a strong aspiration to support MBKU’s mission of supplying the world with more compassionate health care leaders, Denny and Lynn are passionate about continuing to support MBKU however they can. “I’ve always said to Denny that I want to do everything we can to put Ketchum on the map,” says Lynn. “I want Ketchum to continue on their path to becoming the go-to school for learning about medicine, and being known for the quality of their education.”