Jeffrey Lang

Legacy Gift Results from Just One Visit to St. Francis

Jeffrey Lang had a longstanding fear of hospitals. A few years ago when Jeff first experienced shortness of breath and noticed that his heart was pounding a bit more as he climbed a flight of stairs, the healthy 57-year-old was frightened but ignored the troubling symptoms. Eventually, Jeff's friends insisted that he go to the nearest emergency room.

When he arrived at St. Francis Hospital, Jeff was very nervous. The nurses immediately sensed his fear and let him know that they were going to take good care of him. A short time later, as he was lying in his hospital bed, Jeff was greeted by Dr. Richard Shlofmitz, Chairman, Department of Cardiology.

"Dr. Shlofmitz stood at the foot of my bed, gave my toe a light pinch, and said —Everything will be all right,' and I just knew that it would be," recalls Jeff.

All of his cardiac tests came back fine, and it turned out that an ulcer was the cause of his discomfort. That was Jeff's first personal experience at St. Francis Hospital, but it was reassuring for him-and today he refers to St. Francis as a very special place.

A few months later, Jeff's positive experience at St. Francis was on his mind when he was preparing his will and he made an obvious choice … he included St. Francis Hospital in his estate plan.

Today Jeff is comforted by the knowledge that his legacy gift will help St. Francis Hospital for generations to come-and that is knowledge that helps him to breathe a little easier!