Donor Spotlight: Susan Martin

Susan Martin has always been passionate about children’s health. A strong believer that no child should be left without access to care, she has opened both her heart and home to the issue. She spends the majority of her time volunteering for organizations, sitting on various committees and boards, and has previously served with her late husband as a foster parent for newborns with special needs.

“I’m just a normal person who has a strong faith, believes in family and that good health is just our human right,” Susan tells us. “I believe we have a responsibility to a fellow man, woman or child, to give them the opportunity to live a healthy productive life.”

This past October, at the 11th Annual Jim Bernstein Health Leadership Dinner, the Foundation received a generous donation from Susan to support the Bernstein Fellows program. We are extremely grateful for her contribution that will help to support the work being done to advance community health in North Carolina.

What first brought the Fellows program to Susan’s attention was Dr. Steve North, a previous Bernstein Fellow and current Foundation board member. Also passionate about children’s health, Dr. North used his fellowship to develop the Health-e-Schools school-based telemedicine program. He has continued work with this program as the founder of the Center for Rural Health Innovation, an organization focused on applying innovative technologies to improve access to health care in rural communities.

[box] “I have a great deal of admiration for Steve North,” Susan said. “Knowing his story, I wanted to get a better understanding of the other people involved.” [/box]

Impressed by what she learned about other Fellows and their projects, Susan decided to give the program more support. “I really like all the things I’ve read about,” she reflects. “The work they’re doing just makes sense, especially for our rural areas.”

To learn more about the Bernstein Fellows program, click here.