A tradition of giving back

As a notorious “over buyer,” Tom Brock was excited to try something new with his family for the Christmas holiday. Rather than loading his grandchildren down with excessive material items, he and his partner, Donna, wanted to give each child the gift of generosity and learning how to act on it despite their young ages.

“Donna had the idea to gift each grandchild with $100 to be donated to the charity of their choice,” Tom said. “Each child was to decide where they wanted their donation to go and then come back and tell me why they picked that specific organization. We hoped to inspire them to develop a spirit of giving back and passing along blessings to those around us. It’s never too early to learn to lead your life with a servant heart.”

Tom was impressed by the attention and care that each member of his family gave to the task, but he was most astonished by how seriously his five-year-old granddaughter, Gwen, took his assignment.

“At five years old, I figured that Gwen would need some guidance, but she took us all by surprise when she said she wanted her donation to benefit Baptist Health,” he said. “Gwen had recently undergone surgery to have her tonsils and adenoids removed and ear tubes placed to alleviate issues she was having with sleep, as well as ear and throat pains, and she wanted to give back to the place that made her feel better.”

Having recently completed chemotherapy treatment for cancer in his tongue at a facility in Ohio, Tom was humbled by his Gwen’s mindset and her understanding of how dollars in healthcare have the opportunity to make an impact that benefit multiple lives.

“This quickly became a new tradition for our family,” Tom said. “It makes me feel good to build a legacy of giving back that I can share with my grandchildren, and for them to begin growing into the next generation of philanthropically minded young people who act on their heart for others. The younger you develop that mindset, the better off we can all be.”

Tom recognizes that whether it is money or an act, the action of giving back is important. “The care that our family has received through different stages in our life at Baptist Health has been truly life changing. From elevating Gwen’s quality of life to my hopeful prognosis following cancer care, Baptist Health has walked with us through times of uncertainty and fear, and it is my hope that our support can help someone else who may be walking a similar path.”