“Lonely Blues,” a giclee print donated by artist Colt Idol, goes up for auction at the 2025 Mayfaire fundraiser for Benefis Foundation toward establishing the Goodnow Healthy Aging Center. Photo credit Really Montana Photography.
Benefis Health System announces today that the recent Mayfaire fundraiser netted a record of more than $1.4 million toward establishing the Goodnow Healthy Aging Center.
“Donors, sponsors, and volunteers make Mayfaire the special and transformative event that it’s become,” said Jami Wald, chief operating officer of Benefis Foundation. “It was wonderful to see this community’s faith in the future and optimism for a better era in aging. When the center opens next year, those who step inside will know it’s the generosity of many who made it possible.”
On May 1, Benefis broke ground on the Goodnow Health Aging Center along 10th Avenue South next to the Women’s and Children’s Center on East Campus. The 15,000-square-foot outpatient clinic will address issues of nutrition, medication, cognitive health, and mobility with dedicated specialists focusing on care gaps in prevention and adaptations.
“This center’s mission has touched many of us who see ourselves as someone who could benefit from aging specialists or who worry about people we love and what aging will mean for them,” Wald said.
A quarter of Montana’s population will be 65 and older by 2030. Serving the unique needs of this demographic and helping them stay healthy is a worthy mission, Benefis Health System Board Chair Shannon Hoiland said at the groundbreaking.
“This will be a place where people from down the street and across the region can find simplified care, where they can recommit to their health, and where they can find support for embracing the opportunities and promise of their retirement years,” she said.
Architect Steve L’Heureux, who serves on the Benefis Foundation board, inspired the Mayfaire audience with his own story of increasing his fitness as he aged with triathlons and his development of a mild cognitive delay. He hopes to age better than did his mother, who had Alzheimer’s disease.
This year’s Luminary Award, a recognition of those “whose generosity, leadership, and vision shine a bright light in our community,” was presented at Mayfaire to Ed and Sue Warren.
Sue was a nurse who helped found The Grandview at Benefis to expand options for older folks and whose work with the Alzheimer’s Association of Montana and the library’s Memory Café helps individuals and families navigate what follows that challenging diagnosis. Ed was a special education teacher whose work touched many lives, Wald said.
“Ed and Sue are mighty oaks in our Benefis Foundation forest of friends,” Wald said. “They have seized many opportunities to share their time, talent, and treasures to benefit others, particularly in the spheres of healthcare, education, and wildlife conservation.”
Mayfaire has only crossed the million-dollar-raised mark once before, with more than $1 million in 2022 toward Benefis Sletten Cancer Institute renovations. Throughout the event’s 26-year history, it has raised more than $9.5 million to enhance healthcare services at Benefis.
For more information or to contribute to the project, visit Benefis.org/HealthyAging.
Benefis Foundation COO Jami Wald presents Ed and Sue Warren with the 2025 Luminary Award recognizing their community impact. The presentation was a highlight of Mayfaire, the Foundation’s annual fundraiser, which set a record this year. Photo credit Really Montana Photography.
Author: Staff
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