St. Francis Medical Center’s winter wonderland
St. Francis Medical Center’s cafeteria transformed into a winter wonderland Saturday for a special “Breakfast with Santa” event. Hundreds of guests enjoyed breakfast, music and received toys during a Christmas celebration that — combined with the Mill Hill Holiday House Tour — kicked off the capital city’s holiday season.
The morning party accentuated a St. Francis Medical Center mission to develop relationships that extend beyond medical services.
“Looking out across this room and seeing all of the people here, it makes us feel very good. We’re happy to support the community,” Dr. Carmen J. Romano said. “One of the focuses of the St. Francis Medical Center mission is to have a transforming presence in the community. We have a commitment to the City of Trenton.”
Breakfast guests enjoyed a hot meal and each child received one specially wrapped gift.
Stephanie Dorman, director of the St. Francis Medical Center Foundation, described a family affair approach executed by hospital employees, trustees and volunteers.
“This is our fifth ‘Breakfast With Santa’ and the main goal is to invite lots of children for breakfast, to get their picture taken with Santa and to receive a gift. It’s all about having a good time,” Dorman explained. “We’ve had major support from other community partners, including Toys For Tots which helped in assuring that each child went home with a gift.”
Numerous St. Francis Medical Center employees or their relatives offered time or made gift contributions.
Dr. Romano and Brian Bennett, Foundation Board of Trustees chairman, alternated roles as Santa Claus while Romano’s daughter, Nicole, coordinated decoration efforts.
Jennifer Voutsinas, development associate for St. Francis Medical Center Foundation, served as chairperson for the breakfast.
Voutsinas said she enjoyed “outreaching to families and staff who live in the surrounding neighborhoods, plus, networking with social service agencies, and donors all in one event.”
“I met so many new people, and it helped me to learn more about our hospital, as well as the community that we serve. It was a pretty big undertaking with lots of moving parts... This became a special experience for everyone and all involved had a blast.”
L.A. Parker is a Trentonian columnist.