Log A Load for Kids sets a new fundraising record in support of Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals and Maine kids

Date: 02/15/2021

The Professional Logging Contractors of Maine (PLC) presented a check for $136,716.82 to Maine’s Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals (CMN Hospitals) on Friday, February 12 to support lifesaving and highly specialized medical care for Maine kids. The donation includes money raised at the PLC’s 2020 Log A Load for Kids events, which set a record for fundraising during one of the logging industry’s most challenging years.

Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center, one of the state’s two Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, is grateful for Log A Load for Kids’ support of advanced therapies, medical equipment, staff training, and other critical pediatric care needs.

“Every day, our pediatric team is a lifeline for the sickest and most vulnerable infants, children, and adolescents in Maine,” says Jeremy Yardley, MD, FAAP, pediatric hospitalist and chief of pediatrics, Eastern Maine Medical Center. “The Maine logging industry is with us every step of the way, helping to fund tools and training that save lives and make every patient and family’s experience more comfortable. In the middle of a pandemic, the logging industry continues to show what a meaningful difference can be made when we come together for Maine kids.”

The PLC raises money for CMN Hospitals at their annual Log A Load for Kids Golf Tournament in Lincoln, at a yearly auction, which was held virtually in 2020 due to the pandemic, and through generous donations from PLC members and other supporters.

“It is frankly amazing that in the most difficult year Maine’s logging industry has ever faced, and despite the challenges of holding events, PLC members, supporters, friends and families have rallied to raise a new record amount for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals,” says Dana Doran, executive director, Professional Logging Contractors of Maine. “This group should be very proud of this accomplishment and it means a lot that even though in 2020 we were not able to be together in the same way we have been in previous years, we were still together in this effort.”

Every dollar raised for CMN Hospitals in our state stays in our communities to help Maine kids. At Eastern Maine Medical Center, CMN Hospitals has recently funded medical equipment including a pocket ultrasound machine, scales for pediatric telehealth, and pediatric endoscopes; patient comfort items; infant and child safety initiatives including sleep sacks and a car seat safety check program; and advanced training for staff.
 
According to Doran, it’s no surprise that the logging industry, with a deeply rooted passion for supporting Maine kids, exceeded all prior annual fundraising efforts, even during a pandemic.
“Every individual, business, and organization that stepped up to participate in this effort is dealing with unprecedented challenges because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic,” adds Doran. “Yet this group always comes through for the Log A Load cause and the kids because we know that whatever challenges we face, these children and their families are facing far bigger challenges and they need our help.”