In the lead up to the comprehensive philanthropy center in the main hospital lobby, Heurista was charged with introducing new graphic elements that would coordinate with the existing brand colors and fonts to celebrate themes specific to philanthropy. Initially aligned with the foundation’s “Catawba Cares” tagline, the toolkit for philanthropy has continued to grow and can now be seen integrated into other brand elements. These visuals include the helping hands, leaves and swirls, and a bright diversity of colors to represent the vibrancy and excitement of the community supporting the Catawba Valley Medical Center.

The Catawba Valley Health System worked with Heurista to develop recognition standards that govern donor listings and area naming signage. The standards include more story about the donor and the impact of their giving, thus better reflecting the donor as a member of a community of supporters. The associated procedures have expedited collaboration between the foundation, marketing and facilities teams so that the experience of the Catawba Valley Medical Center is welcoming and engaging, reflecting the friendly and supportive nature of the community.

As a not-for-profit community hospital, CVMC enjoys a unique connection to the people of the western North Carolina piedmont. The hospital was formed in response to the need for reliable healthcare and has proven to be a component of economic growth. The Catawba Valley Health System is recognized a leader in the community and a contributor to all aspects of community well being.

Throughout the organization’s history, donors have provided philanthropic support for community wellness through the Catawba Medical Foundation. The foundation maintains a comprehensive philanthropy center in the main lobby of the Catawba Valley Medical Center where the breadth and longevity of philanthropic support is celebrated. The center is posthumously named for Oren L. Cline, through a gift from his family.

The displays include a digital screen of rotating content, historical exhibits and local art alongside donor recognition. This combination well represents this community, where a working together and celebrating shared cultural values abounds.

With increasing frequency, clients express an interest in digital donor recognition. Catawba Valley Medical Center chose to use technology, but with an important caveat: keep it simple. Their display is managed internally and runs from a computer connected to the hospital’s intranet, allowing the IT team to monitor the system remotely. 

The simplicity of the programming is disguised by the attractive graphics, which are coordinated with other visuals in the philanthropy center. The magical quality of the graphics aligns with the “Catawba Cares” theme to represent philanthropy, especially employee giving.

Over a period of several years, a vision of the hospital as a central hub for the spirit of the community has evolved in Catawba Valley. As a leader in the community, the he not-for-profit health system made a commitment to bringing the rich cultural heritage of the region into the healthcare facilities. 

Heurista was engaged to develop an art program that would launch in new construction projects. Local artists were interviewed and submitted examples of their work for consideration. Photographers, painters, collage artists and sculptors were chosen and several pieces were commissioned specifically for this purpose.

The art program is scalable. The hospital has negotiated rights to reuse all of the chosen photography and has a library of other artists and artworks at the ready for expansion into other areas of the hospital. Furthermore, a relationship has formed with local art representative Sarah Frisbey and her store, Bottega. This allows for a rotating collection of artwork, some of it for sale, in the main lobby of the hospital.

Heurista provided overall project management, including vision-setting, negotiation with the artists, location planning, resourcing and budget and schedule management. This project dovetailed well with our other projects telling philanthropic stories at Catawba Valley Medical Center.

Anniversaries provide good opportunities to look back over what has been accomplished and to promote a vision for the future. In the case of the Catawba Valley Medical Center, the 50th anniversary of the health system coincided with a major renovation of the lobby and adjacent public spaces. Thus was born the idea of temporary and permanent graphics to celebrate the milestone year.

For the celebratory year, there were graphics installed in the main lobby and other primary public destinations, including the “ambassadors”, life-sized prints of employees and other individuals representative of the CVMC community. These figures were movable so that they could be used in events planned throughout the year.

A permanent historical timeline was installed in the main hallway leading to primary service areas. This timeline uses photos and storytelling to celebrate the milestone events for the health system and the community. It is design so that new sections can be added over time, keeping the storyline current and informative to staff, patients, families and other visitors.

Capital campaigns can be complex projects where multiple needs are met simultaneously. Such was the case with the renovation of the Emergency Center and Cardiac Services area at CVMC. To bridge the time and storylines for this campaign, the Catawba Health Foundation adopted a centralizing theme, the Heart of the Community.

Heurista was engaged to develop a display that would recognize major donors to the campaign in a publicly-accessible area and encourage ongoing giving at all levels. The model is similar to what was used for other displays at CVMC, marrying bright colors, natural themes and inclusive donor lists. The individual decals can be added by staff over time, making it possible for the giving to continue indefinitely.

Families in Catawba Valley have long marked the birth of their children with medallions placed in the hospital corridors.  Heurista was engaged to design new frames that consolidate the medallions and encourage new families to participate. The frames reflect design details typical of the Catawba Medical Foundation’s other donor recognition displays.  The medallions list the baby’s name and birthdate along with an image of the infant’s footprint.  

This project was made possible through the support of a family who funded the new frames in their daughter’s memory.  This approach to funding the update or expansion of displays has been employed in more than one area of the Catawba Valley Medical Center and has proven quite successful for re-engaging the community in the Foundation’s giving programs.

As the hospital has evolved, there have been times where older recognition programs needed to be revamped for new spaces and to align with the current brand. Such was the case with the tree of life, an expression of support for those members of the community facing cancer.

When the Cancer Center moved to a new, state of the art facility, Heurista was asked to recreate the tree motif, move all existing names listed to the new design, and plan a program for ongoing giving. Thus the displayfunded by Bob Robinson in memory of Claire Robinson. Community members continue to remember their friends and family members through the giving program managed by the Catawba Health Foundation.

Fundraising projects and incidental major gifts result in interior and exterior area naming at the Catawba Valley Medical Center. Heurista designed a hierarchy of sign sizes that correspond to the gift amount. Each is presented with story about the donor, using materials indicative of the Catawba Health System brand.