The Visiting Nurse Association of Boston honored Heroes in Health Care during the nonprofit’s 11th annual Gala on Saturday, Nov. 12, at the Mandarin Oriental, 776 Boylston St., Boston.
The Gala was VNA of Boston’s signature fundraising event and has raised nearly $2.5 million in essential funding for VNA of Boston’s direct patient care and support for vulnerable, underserved populations through the nonprofit’s Maternal Child Health Program and Charitable Care Fund. Presenting Sponsors for this year’s Gala are Amy and Joshua Boger. Belinda and Henri Termeer are honorary chairs.
This year’s Heroes were Diane Bergeron, former vice president of hospice and advanced illness management for VNA Hospice & Palliative Care; Michael R. Minogue, CEO, president and chairman of Abiomed; and Mutual of America (to be accepted by John R. Greed, president and CEO).
Diane Bergeron, BSN, MSM, CAHA, has devoted much of her career to improving patients’ quality of life at the end of life. During her tenure at VNA Hospice & Palliative Care, she established a home-based palliative care program to meet a growing need — expert care to improve the quality of life for patients with serious illnesses who are not ready for hospice care. She is a past president of the Hospice & Palliative Care Federation of Massachusetts and served on many committees and associations to further end-of-life care.
Michael R. Minogue joined Abiomed in 2004, transitioning the corporate mission to heart muscle recovery through creation of breakthrough percutaneous, heart support technologies. This included the acquisition and development of new technologies such as Impella, the world’s smallest heart pump. Abiomed has earned over 30 global regulatory approvals on new products in the United States, Europe, Japan, China and other countries. Mr. Minogue is one of the co-founders and chairman of the MedTech and BioTech Veterans Program (MVP), a nonprofit that helps military veterans network with industry mentors to discover career opportunities in the life sciences industries.
Mutual of America, established in 1945 to provide retirement products, is being honored for their extensive philanthropic endeavors. Twenty years ago, the Mutual of America Foundation established the Community Partnership Award to honor unique, creative, and innovative programs that show a pattern of success in solving a community need. The award is presented to 10 organizations annually with substantial grant support to help further health care and other initiatives that contribute to the good of the community.
VNA of Boston, the first organized visiting nurse association in the United States, is celebrating 130 years of caring for the community. The nonprofit provides vital, home-based health care to residents of Greater Boston. VNA of Boston has an office at 500 Rutherford Ave., Charlestown.