May 7, 2004 - Gwynedd Valley, PA – The North Penn Community Health Foundation, in conjunction with Gwynedd-Mercy College, recently awarded three North Penn area nurses $3,500 each at a ceremony and reception held at the College on May 3. The awards are part of the Foundation’s Nursing Excellence Recognition Program.

The program, which began last year, recognizes the important work of nurses in providing health care services in our community. Nurses working in all settings and at all levels within the nursing profession are eligible for nomination. Nominees must demonstrate outstanding performance in their commitment to the highest standards of nursing, to the profession of nursing, to personal and professional growth, to mentoring colleagues, and to the community. Nurses must be nominated by their peers, and must work full-time and have been employed for at least two years in the North Penn Community Health Foundation service community.

This year’s winners included Sally Kauffman, nurse coordinator for the North Penn School District; Mary-Helen Scales, Emergency Department staff nurse at Doylestown Hospital; and Amy L. Ruesch, adult nurse practitioner for the Free Clinic of Doylestown.

Left to right: Russell Johnson, executive director, North Penn Community Health Foundation; Andrea Hollingsworth, dean, Gwynedd-Mercy College School of Nursing; Sally Kauffman, nurse coordinator, North Penn School District; Mary-Helen Scales, Emergency Department staff nurse, Doylestown Hospital; Amy L. Ruesch, adult nurse practitioner, Free Clinic of Doylestown; Nancy Allegrezza and Fred Allegrezza.

The Foundation’s program is made possible through a donation made to the North Penn Community Health Foundation by Fred and Nancy Allegrezza, local residents of our community. The Allegrezzas hope these awards will help to raise community and professional awareness of the value and role nurses have in providing health care services in the community.

The North Penn Community Health Foundation, founded in January 2002, identifies, selects and invests in programs and agencies that will improve the health, welfare and quality of life of the community.

Gwynedd-Mercy College, founded in 1948 and sponsored by the Sisters of Mercy, is a four-year, coeducational institution offering associate, baccalaureate and master’s degree programs on a full or part-time basis. In the 2004 Best Colleges issue of U.S. News & World Report, Gwynedd-Mercy ranked among the top in the nation for graduation rates with a rate of 84 percent. The College is located in Gwynedd Valley, Pa., on Sumneytown Pike, between routes 309 and 202.