With a swift snip of the oversized scissors, the new 3,800-square foot Lester E. & Phyllis M. Foster Oncology and Infusion Center was ceremoniously opened yesterday at Windham Hospital.

Located adjacent to the main hospital building on the second floor of 5 Founders St., the new facility opened to patients in February.

“We’re especially proud of the work being done here by our dynamic oncology team,” said Donna Handley, president of Windham Hospital. “All of their efforts can be seen throughout this Infusion Center and impact the experience of our patients every day.”

The Foster Oncology and Infusion Center features:

  • Nine reclining chairs.
  • Ample seating for caregivers and family members to accompany patients to treatment.
  • A patient beverage and kitchen area for snacks.
  • Two private treatment rooms.
  • Four exam rooms the oncologists use for appointments with new patients or before chemotherapy infusions.

The facility was funded through efforts of the Auxiliary to Windham Hospital and the generosity of David and Marilyn Foster of the Lester E. and Phyllis M. Foster Foundation. A campaign fueled by a series of fundraisers was launched in 2010, but David and Marilyn Foster, both corporators at Windham, began partnering with the Auxiliary in 2003 on fundraising concerts throughout the area with David’s band, the Mohegan Sun All-Stars, formerly the Shaboo All-Stars. Together, they raised more than $250,000 to furnish the Infusion Center.

“It’s that commitment and community spirit that we celebrate today, in a beautiful space that our patients are already able to use for their life-saving treatments,” Handley said. “It’s because of people like the Fosters and our many other community supporters that we’re able to continue the legacy of Windham Hospital in eastern Connecticut.”

Kristi Gafford, vice president of operations with the Hartford HealthCare Cancer Institute, spoke to the benefits being part of a healthcare system has brought to the hospital and the community it serves, specifically as a charter member of the Memorial Sloan Kettering (MSK) Cancer Center Alliance.

“We give our patients unprecedented access to the world’s most advanced clinical trials; and now more than ever before, physicians, nurses, pharmacists and researchers are working collaboratively to implement cancer treatment standards and protocols developed at MSK,” Gafford said.

One of the key benefits of the MSK collaboration, she added, is access to revolutionary clinical trials for patients with an ever-expanding scope of cancers. In the past year, Hartford HealthCare has doubled the number of trials it has joined at MSK, enrolling more than 100 patients from Connecticut.

“For our patients – whether they’re from Willimantic or New Britain – they now have access to the best cancer care available, and whenever possible we are able to ensure that their care is delivered right here in the community,” Gafford said.

For the Fosters, the connection to their community’s hospital stems from David’s father, Lester, who served as a hospital corporator, a board member and board treasurer for many years.

“I’m hoping (my parents) can see this because this place meant so much to them,” David Foster said. “We believe this is going to help hundreds if not thousands of people through time.”

It is commitment like that, Handley noted, that keeps Windham a vibrant healthcare resource.

“Windham is truly a community hospital, but we can’t do what we do without the community’s support. The commitment and generosity of people like David and Marilyn Foster is invaluable to our very existence,” she said.

For more information on the services for cancer patients at Windham Hospital, click here.