Baptist Health Care Foundation

04/24/2026

Blingo, jewelry, friends - the perfect Women’s Night Out! Thank you to Bere' Jewelers for hosting our Women’s Board for a fun evening with a little friendly competition. We’re already looking forward to next year!

For more information about the Women’s Board or to join, visit https://www.baptisthealthcarefoundation.org/womens-board.

04/22/2026

🌟 Women's Board Wednesday 🌟

We are excited to welcome Jodi Bell to the Women's Board of the Foundation executive committee as our new Parliamentarian. Jodi is the Vice President of Sales, Panhandle at USA TODAY Network and LocaliQ.

"I joined the Women’s Board because I wanted to be part of a team that doesn't just talk about community support – they actually build it. In Pensacola, there are few organizations with a bigger heart than Baptist Health Care, but it’s their action that really sets them apart.

From helping provide mammograms to constructing playgrounds for children in need, they make things happen. I became a member to contribute to this powerhouse group and help ensure that access to quality health care remains a cornerstone of our community."

To learn more about Jodi and the Women's Board, visit https://www.baptisthealthcarefoundation.org/womens-board/executive-committee.

04/14/2026

Baptist Health Care Foundation’s 12th annual Casino Royale gala raised more than $316,000 (its highest total to date!!) to benefit Gulf Breeze Hospital as Baptist Health Care continues advancing care across the organization.

The annual black-tie Casino Royale gala is held at the Hilton Pensacola Beach and combines elegance with the thrills and excitement made famous in the James Bond films. More than 300 guests enjoyed an elegant gourmet dinner, six-piece showband, casino games and a silent auction.

Thank you to our generous sponsors for making this the best year yet!!

Photos by Deanie Sexton Photography

04/08/2026

🌟 Women's Board Wednesday 🌟

We'd like to welcome our new Volunteer Chair, Marcy Miller, to the Women's Board executive committee!

"I have loved serving as a model and a vendor over the last several years for the Stepping Out in Style Fashion Show, which is the largest fundraising event for the Women’s Board. It is such a fun and memorable event, supporting various initiatives of Baptist Health Care."

To learn more about Marcy and the Women's Board, visit https://www.baptisthealthcarefoundation.org/womens-board/executive-committee.

04/02/2026

We are excited to have Qwana Gable, physician liaison for Baptist Health Care, as our new Vice President of the Women's Board!

"I became a Women’s Board member because of the incredible warmth and kindness I experienced from the Foundation team over the years. Long before I joined the board, they greeted me with genuine smiles and unwavering positivity. That kind of consistent encouragement made me think, “I’d love to be part of something like this.”

Now that I serve alongside these amazing women, I can confidently say they are every bit as genuine and inspiring as I imagined. It’s a privilege to belong to such a powerhouse group. Baptist is deeply special to me. I’ve worked for Baptist Health Care for over 23 years, and professionally, it has shaped so much of who I am."

Read more about Qwana and the Women's Board by visiting our website: https://www.baptisthealthcarefoundation.org/WBProfiles/qwana-gable-vice-president

03/31/2026

Big news!!

Big news! Baptist Hospital has been recognized on the Forbes Top Hospitals 2026 list, earning a four-star rating—placing it among the nation’s highest-performing hospitals. This reflects our commitment to clinical excellence, quality outcomes and patient‑centered care. Congrats to our team for achieving this honor!
Learn more at ebaptisthealthcare.org.

03/20/2026

The Baptist Laboratory team received a Helping Hands Mini-Grant to purchase Baptist-branded shirts and jackets from the swag store for their courier teams.

“For us, this project had a ripple effect! The anticipated outcome was far greater than expected.

Our couriers are out in the community every day. They are the front line of representation. The expressions on the faces of these team members as we gave them their Baptist-branded shirts and jackets was more than we could have hoped for. There was a whole new sense of pride in the representation and a closer sense of team. It was a boost in morale of epic proportions. There is something special about wearing the Baptist logo that lets the community know that you are a part of something bigger, something greater than all of us. You are a part of a “Community of Caring.”

The other aspect of this project was a sense of safety. Not only from a facilities perspective but also that of a patient. In this world that we live in, you must put yourself in the position of a patient or facility team member seeing a person in plain clothes entering the facility, whether delivering or receiving specimens. From appearances, it can be cause for concern. Wearing the Baptist logo automatically announces the arrival of someone that belongs there — a professional, someone that has a job to fulfill, and that they are “safe” to be there.

Not only did this project hit the mark with our Mission of team, community and caring, it provided professional appearance, improved recognition and trust at partner sites and reinforced the hospital’s commitment to security, safety and service quality. And lastly, this project showed our couriers that we value them. They are a huge part of what makes us better and their hard work and efforts don’t go unnoticed.”

Submitted by Stacy V. Paun, Laboratory Services Coordinator

03/18/2026

🌟 Women's Board Wednesday 🌟

The Foundation welcomes Cherie Meguess, Vice President of Individual and Senior Markets at Torgersen Consulting Insurance & Benefits, as our new President of the Women's Board!

Learn more about Cherie and the Women's Board on our website: https://www.baptisthealthcarefoundation.org/WBProfiles/cherie-meguess-president

03/16/2026

Ricky Fretwell, Baptist clinical education instructor, visited San Salvador, El Salvador on a mission trip in February 2026. Ricky and the mission team began building a church for the local community in a remote location near Rio Lempa River. The team worked on constructing the outside walls and was nearly halfway finished by the end of the trip. Construction will continue throughout the year with help from the local paster and community.

“The project is very special to that community because it brings great opportunity for people to gather and worship in a place that is not currently available. The church, once constructed, will also do outreach for the children in the community and help with small projects for the locals. The pastor and his family are from the area and felt led by the lord to have a church there. With no funding or help, they were mocked by the locals. They prayed and went to work.

They began by selling baked goods locally in the market. They stayed focused and prayed. They saved enough money for a down payment for the piece of property that the church sits on. A local donated a cow that was sold at market, and another person donated a tractor that was sold to help with funding for the rest of the property and clearing of the dirt work. They continued to make impacts in the community, and everyone could see the project coming together. Now the project is underway, and they are gaining more respect from the locals. The projected finish date is the end of the year. They have enough money donated to finish the walls and roof.

Thank you to the Baptist Health Care Foundation for the contribution to help with this project and the impact that it's going to have on the people there.”

Through the Foundation's Helping Hands team member giving program, team members can apply for financial assistance to support domestic or foreign mission trips. We are grateful to be able to support the impact Ricky made on his mission trip.

03/12/2026

Baptist external relations team is enjoying the University of West Florida Women in Leadership Conference today. 💙