“We’ve seen a lot of smaller communities lose their hospitals, and that forces the patient to have to travel a distance for care. My dad was always a big advocate for keeping businesses here because that keeps our small town going.”
wanted to fulfil his wishes. “We wanted to see it complete,” he says.“The hospital meant a lot to him, and my mom has had numerous health issues over the years and has gone to IRMC numerous times.” “Our dad really loved the community,” adds Jo-Una.“He was the type of guy who didn’t just want to hand over $100,000 to some guy to go do something with it. He wanted to affect the people who needed it most, and that’s why the van idea was so important to him.” In the year-plus since the donation, the van has received plenty of use from cancer patients who need transportation to the hospital, CJ says. “I spoke with [IRMC Healthcare Foundation Executive Director] Heather Reed and she told me the van is going nonstop,” he says.“It’s always picking people up or dropping people off, so I’m really happy the hospital is getting use out of it.” CJ says he is proud to have a health
care center like IRMC in his community, explaining how it is uncommon for small municipalities to have a hospital in town. “We’ve seen a lot of smaller communities lose their hospitals, and that forces the patient to have to travel a distance for care,” he says.“My dad was always a big advocate for keeping businesses here because that keeps our small town going.” In addition to owning a car dealership, Charles was a past president of the Indiana County Chamber of Commerce and a member of the board of directors at S&T Bank. Jo-Una says her father played an integral role in getting Route 119 to Indiana, which allowed for a quicker commute to and from Pittsburgh. “Getting the highway here made living and working in Indiana more desirable,” she says.“He always wanted to make Indiana more bustling. He wanted to make Indiana a better place to live.”
CJ SPADAFORA
IRMC HEALTHCARE FOUNDATION 2022 DONOR REPORT 5
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