Louis Thomas Subaru donates blankets, art kits to WVU Medicine Camden Clark | News, Sports, Jobs

Representatives of Lou Thomas Subaru, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and the WVU Cancer Institute Camden Clark Comprehensive Regional Cancer Center gathered outside the center Monday as Louis Thomas Subaru, through Subaru Loves to Care program, donated blankets and art kits to the cancer center. Pictured are, from left, Rhonda Boso-Suggs, AVP Ancillary Services; John Surock, Louis Thomas Subaru; Lou Thomas, Louis Thomas Subaru; Steve Altmiller, Camden Clark President/CEO; Dr. Jeff Ryckman, Radiation Oncologist; Kristin Leaman, Social Worker; Tammi Smith, Radiation Oncology Manager; Sheila Carroll, Breast Health Navigator; Angy Helmick, Nurse Navigator; Lauren Gillian, Camden Clark Director of Cancer Services; Amy Sawin, Medical Oncology Manager; Martha Dawson, VP of Quality and Patient Safety; and MarJean Kennedy, Vice President of Marketing, Business Development. (Photo by Brett Dunlap)

PARKERSBURG — Comforting cancer patients and their families is the focus of a donation a local auto dealer is making to the WVU Medicine Camden Clark Medical Center.

As part of the Subaru Loves to Care program, representatives from Louis Thomas Subaru in Parkersburg and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society presented blankets and art kits as gestures of hope for patients undergoing cancer treatment at the WVU Cancer Institute Camden Clark Comprehensive Regional Cancer Center.

“It is an honor and privilege of ours to be a partner with WVU Medicine Camden Clark,” said Lou Thomas, Louis Thomas Subaru President. “All of our lives have in some way been touched by cancer.

“We at Louis Thomas Subaru are forever grateful for the leadership of Subaru nationally in helping to create these partnerships and the Subaru Loves to Care outreach. If in some small way a patient can find comfort in knowing someone is thinking of them our prayers will have been answered.”

Dr. Jeff Ryckman, Radiation Oncologist, said the most important things in life are how long people live and how well they live.

Louis Thomas Subaru, through Subaru Loves to Care program, donated around 80 blankets and a number of art kits to the WVU Cancer Institute Camden Clark Comprehensive Regional Cancer Center. The blankets provide comfort to patients undergoing cancer treatment and the art kits are for their kids who sometimes have to accompany their parents to treatments. (Photo by Brett Dunlap)

“Staying warm and being comfortable is an important part of that,” he said. “This is for folks to be more comfortable.”

It can be really chilly in the treatment rooms and the blankets help people to be more comfortable in that situation, Ryckman said.

“It is a symbol of the support the patient receives,” he said.

The donation includes around 80 blankets and a number of art kits.

“Sometimes people have to bring children with them when they undergo chemo treatment,” Thomas said. “(The art kits are) something to help keep the kids occupied.

“This is just one small way we can support people undergoing chemo and cancer. It is important to let them know that there is someone out in the community thinking about what they are going through.”

Thomas said he sees the relationship continuing for a long time.

“The care, compassion and service they provide to our community is invaluable,” Thomas said of Camden Clark.

The connection the hospital has with the community is evident in its partnership with Louis Thomas Subaru for the past few years, said Lauren Gillian, Director of Cancer Services at the cancer center.

“Having them come alongside us to meet the needs of our patients and families as they experience a challenging health journey demonstrates their commitment to the residents of the Mid-Ohio Valley and beyond,” she said.

Ryckman said it is important for the community and businesses, like Louis Thomas Subaru, to support different things going on at the hospital to help those in need and those going through difficult things.

“To be a part of the community, I think it is important to show support,” he said. “Lou has done this (for five years) and they are very generous. It sets a good example.

“We are taking care of a very sick population with limited resources so we really need all the help we can get out in the community. Together we can do a lot more than if we are all just doing our own thing.”

To learn more about Subaru Loves to Care, visit www.subaru.com/care and follow #SubaruLovesToCare on social media. To learn more about the Subaru Love Promise, visit www.subaru.com/lovepromise.

Brett Dunlap can be reached at bdunlap@newsandsentinel.com