Lori Ryan (center) and Rick Stollmeyer (right) with FHMC President and CEO Alan Iftiniuk (left) after announcing their $1 million gift at the Foundation's 2014 Celebration of Caring Gala.
The Stollmeyer and Ryan Families
Local Entrepreneur and Former OB Nurse Give Back to Pave the Way for New Birthing Center
When Rick Stollmeyer and Lori Ryan had their first daughter at French Hospital Medical Center, they never could have anticipated the major impact that they would one day have on the hospital’s birthing center.
Rick, co-founder and CEO of local software solutions company MINDBODY, recalls being so impressed with the care at French Hospital during his daughter’s delivery that he encouraged Lori to get a job there. Taking his suggestion, it wasn’t long before Lori began working at the hospital, where she worked for 12 years and eventually became an assistant nursing supervisor in the Family Birthing Center.
During the time that Lori was caring for new and soon-to-be families, Rick was hard at work on his own project in the garage of their home. Flash forward to present day and that project - MINDBODY Inc. – would generate revenue of over $70 million in 2014 and go public in late June 2015.
“Not only did Lori love her job at French Hospital, but it also gave me the opportunity to focus on my company and pursue the advancement of this technology that I really believed in,” says Rick.
In 2014, Rick and Lori made the decision to give $1 million to the “French – Well into the Future” Capital Campaign, which includes the expansion and remodel of the hospital’s Family Birthing Center. The donation, which was first announced at French Hospital’s annual Celebration of Caring Gala in September 2014, was the final donation to help the campaign reach its fundraising goal. In recognition of their generosity, the new center will be named the Stollmeyer Family Birthing Center.
The Stollmeyer Family Birthing Center will increase the birth capacity of the hospital, which currently delivers more than 575 babies every year. With construction costs estimated at $4 million, this will be the first major upgrade for the center since its opening 16 years ago. The expansion will include a family waiting area, an upgraded nursing station with the latest technology, and additional private birthing rooms. In addition, a new C-Section suite will be added to the Stollmeyer Family Birthing Center, which will enhance service delivery as expecting mothers will no longer have to travel down the hall for surgery.
The substantial donation to the new birthing center becomes even more meaningful knowing that both French Hospital and MINDBODY have the shared goal of improving health and wellness through technology and innovation. Although Rick and Lori are no longer together and have both remarried, this gift is special to their blended families and important to their new spouses, too.
“My time at the hospital was so rewarding,” says Lori. “I loved working with such a qualified staff knowing I was making a difference in the lives of local families. I can’t imagine how much added value the new Family Birthing Center will bring to San Luis Obispo County. Rick and I are really excited to be part of the advancements; being able to make this gift means a lot to us both.”
Construction on the Stollmeyer Family Birthing Center has already begun and is expected to be complete in 2016.
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