Two new faces have joined the board of the Whistler Health Care Foundation.
At the foundation’s annual general meeting last week, Bill Janyk and Linda McKie took up positions on the board.
Janyk will replace Mitch Rhodes as treasurer of the board.
"It’s growing," said Marnie Simon, chair of the foundation.
"I’m very happy actually. We’re getting a really solid board together now."
Even with the two new board members, the foundation is still looking for volunteers to join committees and plan and produce events throughout the year.
Board members have a large task at hand with a goal of raising roughly $1.5 million for Teleradiology equipment for the Whistler Health Care Centre.
This equipment will revolutionize the x-ray system at the centre, replacing chemicals, paper and photographic equipment with digital technology.
Once the digital system is in place, health units in Whistler, Squamish and Pemberton will be interconnected, allowing doctors and specialists to confer over a patient’s condition using computer images rather than describing the injury over the phone.
Earlier this year the Whistler Health Care Foundation was set to accept $1 million from the developers of the Nita Lake Lodge Corporation but the donation was removed from the negotiating table when a resident threatened to sue the municipality over the deal.
"We have to, in a way, start from scratch," said Simon.
Though Whistler is lagging behind in the fundraising efforts, Pemberton and Squamish have already started raising money for their portion of the Teleradiology equipment.
"We’re really going to have to work very hard with fundraising next year," said Simon, adding that the foundation will also look outside the community for grants.
The Whistler Health Care Foundation is hosting a tennis tournament on Saturday Sept. 20 at the Whistler Racquet Club to kick off their fundraising efforts for the digital equipment.
It will be an all day event with a reception at the Wildwood afterwards. There will be small events like a putting contest and a bocci ball tournament taking place throughout the day.
The charity tournament costs $91 per person. Anyone interested in sponsoring a court can hang up a banner for $150.
To register call the Whistler Racquet Club at 604-932-1991.
For information about getting involved with the Whistler Health Care Foundation call Donna Savage at 604-932-1987.
