van Zutphen family “Always there” for hospital

June 23, 2023

“Always there”

It’s the campaign slogan used by Inverness Consolidated Memorial Hospital (ICMH) Charitable Foundation in 2008 when it embarked on what was at the time the largest fundraiser in the history of Inverness County.

Meant to represent the hospital’s role in the lives of county residents, those two words could easily describe the commitment to the hospital shown by the van Zutphen family.

Zutphen Contractors, founded in 1964 by brothers Teddy and John van Zutphen, renewed that commitment in April with a $1 million donation to the foundation on behalf of its present and past employees. It’s a gesture that ICMH facility manager Heather Gillis calls “a game-changer.”

One of the largest employers in the county and the largest heavy civil and marine construction contractors in Nova Scotia, with more than 110 employees, Zutphen is now run by the second generation of the van Zutphen family – Vincent, Leonard and Harvey. Gillis says it was “inspiring” to see that they have maintained the family’s commitment to the hospital and the level of care it provides.

“Our employees are the centre of our business, and we appreciate them all, including those who work for us now and years ago,” Harvey van Zutphen notes. “Many of them and their families use the services at Inverness Consolidated Memorial Hospital for their care and it was only fitting that we honour them with this donation.”

Gillis says she expects the hospital will begin to put that money to work “within the year.”

Taking part in the cheque presentation were, from left, Brenda Rankin MacDonald, ICMH Charitable Foundation fundraising coordinator, Zutphen employee Janet MacDonell, co-owner Leonard van Zutphen, Zutphen employees Lorraine MacIsaac and Nicole MacLean, co-owner Harvey van Zutphen, and ICMH facility manager Heather Gillis.

“We’re still in discussions,” she notes. “We have a regular capital equipment list that we present to the foundation on a regular basis, so that is an ongoing concern. We meet with our departments and look at the overall needs of the facility.”

Following a brief ceremony, Gillis led the hospital’s board of directors, along with Leonard and Harvey van Zutphen, on a tour of the hospital. She says the company’s two co-owners were “very much engaged in the discussion about the needs of the facility.”

“They really had so much knowledge to offer as well,” she adds. “It was inspiring to see.”

Brenda Rankin MacDonald, fundraising coordinator for the ICMH Charitable Foundation, says Harvey van Zutphen had made her aware of the donation in March.

“It was a wonderful call,” she says, noting that all donations, large or small, are greatly appreciated. “I don’t care if it’s five dollars or a million. The impact it has is amazing.”

Staff at ICMH applaud as Zutphen co-founder Teddy van Zutphen and his wife, Hermina, lead a procession through the halls of the hospital.
Photos courtesy: ICMH Charitable Foundation

She pointed to the van Zutphen family’s impact on the 2008 fundraising campaign, which exceeded its goal of raising 1.9 million. John van Zutphen was the campaign chair and, along with his company’s donation of $200,000, he lobbied for the support of other companies.

“We were so appreciative of the Zutphen donation in general, but his participation in particular,” Rankin MacDonald recalls.

The “Always there” campaign led to a number of improvements to the hospital, including an expansion to the Emergency and Ambulatory Care departments, the addition of a Renal Dialysis Unit and the Community Health Centre, as well as replacement of all windows and the update of ventilation and electrical systems.

“We get quite a few donations throughout the year,” Rankin MacDonald says. “In fact, we get a lot of anonymous donations. But that’s just maybe the nature of people around the area and that’s pretty wonderful.”

“We love that people want to give to our hospital,” she adds. “They appreciate the services here and I couldn’t imagine what would happen if we didn’t have the donations.”