Giving

The Prairie Heart Foundation was established to ensure the continuing growth and support of new treatments and technologies to Prairie Heart.

Young boy playing doctor with stethoscope Young boy playing doctor with stethoscope
Prairie Heart Foundation logo

The Prairie Heart Foundation is the philanthropic arm of Prairie Heart. Gifts to Prairie Heart Foundation impact heart and vascular patients from central and southern Illinois and beyond. Whether it’s supporting a groundbreaking procedure, bringing new treatments and technologies to our region, or establishing innovative practices – Prairie Heart donors ensure the best heart and vascular care in the nation is available locally.

“I’ve been to Mayo and other places and I don’t think you can get any better care when it comes to cardiology than with Prairie. Without Prairie, I wouldn’t be here, many people throughout Illinois would not be here, and Illinois would not be the great place that it is to live and raise a family.”

Jim Edgar, Former Governor of Illinois

Future Opportunity

Cardiovascular disease remains the number one cause of death in the United States and world. When Dr. James Dove established Prairie Cardiovascular in 1979, his vision was to extend access to world-class care throughout rural Illinois.

The result is a network of community cardiovascular clinics that has grown to include more than 100 cardiologists and advanced practice clinicians who care for patients in 40+ clinic locations throughout central and southern Illinois.

Prior to his death in 2010, Dr. Dove often reminded colleagues, “The past provides us with direction, and the future provides us with opportunity.”

With your gift to the Prairie Heart Foundation, you can directly support innovative technology, expanded access to patient care, research, patient and operating rooms, medical education, equipment, and where the need is the greatest. You may also pay tribute to a special person who made a difference in your visit or stay with us. Your caregiver will receive an acknowledgment letter announcing a contribution has been made in his or her honor.


Thank you for your generosity that allows us to continue our shared mission to deliver nationally recognized care in local communities, as well as developing new and more efficient ways of meeting our patients’ needs.

Ways to give

Gifts may be made with cash or a check. Please make checks payable to Prairie Heart Foundation, mailed to Ms. Brandy Grove, Manager of Philanthropy, 800 E. Carpenter St., Springfield, IL 62769.

The Prairie Heart Foundation is happy to accept your American Express, Discover Card, Visa or Master Card. Please call our office at 217-814-5177 or click here for a secure donation page.

Click Here to donate online today.

Matching gifts occur when a company matches the charitable contribution of an employee to a nonprofit organization. If you (or your spouse) work for a matching gift company, your gift may be doubled, or even tripled. The matching gift procedure is very simple. The employee gets a matching gift form from their human resources department. After completing the form, the employee sends it along with their gift to the Prairie Heart Foundation. (You may also send in the form after you have made the gift.) The Prairie Heart Foundation confirms on the form that it has received the gift and meets the company’s guidelines for receiving a matching gift. The Foundation then returns the form to the company. The company verifies eligibility of the employee and sends a check to the Prairie Heart Foundation. For more information, please call our office at 217-814-5177. 

Honor Your Heart Care Hero. Gifts of any size to Prairie Heart can be made in honor or in memory of someone. Donors make gifts to remember a loved one, to recognize a physician or another caregiver or to celebrate a special occasion. If you wish to make a gift in honor or in memory of someone, please include the name of the person as well as the contact information (name and address) for any person who we can notify of your thoughtfulness. 

Gifts of appreciated securities may offer you significant tax savings. For information how to transfer securities to Prairie Heart Foundation, please call our office at 217-814-5177. 

Gifts Made Through a Will

Members of the Prairie Heart Legacy Society have arranged for a charitable bequest – a gift made from an estate, after death, or as a result of instructions outlined in a will. Bequests can be of a specific dollar amount, a specific asset or assets or for a percentage of an estate. If you choose to give a gift to Prairie Heart through your will, you can make your bequest available for our immediate use or you may restrict it to endowment. With endowment gifts, a portion of the investment earnings are used to fulfill the stated purpose of the gift. The proper way to list Prairie Heart in your estate is: Prairie Heart Foundation, a division of the Hospital Sisters of St. Francis Foundation, Inc., 800 E. Carpenter St., Springfield, IL 62769.

If you have or are planning on including Prairie Heart in your will, you are eligible to become a member of our Prairie Heart Legacy Society. Please call or write our office and let us know.

Charitable trusts are gifts that allow you to receive ongoing income from an asset. They provide donors with regular cash payments, current charitable income tax deduction, avoidance or reduction of estate taxes and elimination of money-management concerns. Named charitable recipients would receive the remainder of assets upon death.

To leave a legacy gift, simply share this sentence with your attorney or financial planner: 

I bequeath $_____ or _____% of my estate to Prairie Heart Foundation, 800 E. Carpenter St., Springfield, IL 62769. 

If your company or foundation would like to contribute directly to Prairie Heart, please call our office at 217-814-5177.

Transferring a life insurance policy’s ownership can result in great tax benefits for you and is a generous way to give. Prairie Heart Foundation can also be included as a beneficiary of an existing or new policy.

To leave a legacy gift, simply share this sentence with your attorney or financial planner: 

I bequeath $_____ or _____% of my estate to Prairie Heart Foundation, 800 E. Carpenter St., Springfield, IL 62769. 

If you own acreage or farmland, a charitable gift of the land can be especially tax-advantageous.
An endowment is an amount of money that is given to the Prairie Heart Foundation with a stipulation that the funds are invested to earn annual interest rather than spent immediately. A portion of the annual earnings is used to support programs within Prairie Heart. An endowment can be restricted to a specific purpose or unrestricted to be used for the greatest need. Named endowments are a gracious way to honor a loved one or a family name. A minimum of $10,000 is required to establish a named endowment.


Tax ID: 37-1186514
Legal Name: Hospital Sisters of St. Francis Foundation, Inc. 
d/b/a Prairie Heart Foundation 

Donor Stories

Eggertsen Family

In January of 2018, Dane Eggertsen and his wife, Tina, were on their way to Jekyll Island, and then on to Miami for a flight to Panama. Dane's plans changed quickly when he received a call from his physician, explaining he had failed his stress test and advising him to return home immediately and report to the emergency room. Two days later, Dane would undergo successful triple bypass surgery, and in a matter of days he was ready "to get home and get on with life."

Only a couple weeks before this, Dane found himself dizzy and out of breath during a routine hunting trip.  An avid hunter and fisherman for most of his life, Dane is quite active and recalled how unusual this was for him.  “I’m always doing something, a house project, a fishing tournament with my grandson, hunting with my bird dog, a business opportunity, or helping a friend or family member,” said Dane.

Dane and Tina are thankful to the Prairie doctors who saved Dane’s life and grateful his heart condition was discovered before he suffered a heart attack.  Dane shared, “I feel good!  I have increased activity and stamina, and I can enjoy life with my wife, kids, grandkids and great grandkids.”  Dane was inspired to give back to Prairie Heart Foundation after this “important event in his life,” and he now donates annually from his IRA. 

McGraw Family

The McGraw family (including Mike and Juliana McGraw, Jenna and Rich Beyers, Christa McGraw and Dona McGraw) has partnered with Prairie Heart Institute and the Prairie Heart Foundation to begin the Community AED Program in memory of Rick McGraw.

Mike McGraw’s father, Rick, was a patient of Prairie Heart Institute and would tell his family how blessed they were to have Prairie in central Illinois. “I echo that,” said Mike. “We wanted to honor him and give to the community. We appreciate this opportunity and are excited to see how the program benefits the community.”

Christa McGraw said, “The advantage of the Community AED Program is not just the machines provided but the educational aspect and the awareness it brings. I’m excited to see how it can grow in the future.”

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Join us in delivering the best care to our community


If you have any questions or would like to learn more, please contact Brandy Grove, MBA, CFRE, Foundation Manager and Senior Gift Officer, at 217-494-1194 (mobile) or brandy.grove@hshs.com.

619 E. Mason St.  |  Springfield, IL  62701

Foundation Leadership Council

  • Larry Hardy
  • Cesar Coello, MD
  • Patrick Murphy, MD
  • Lisa Majka
  • Lauren Bainter
  • Dane Eggertsen
  • Ali Coffey Farmer

Ex-Officio Member

  • Brandy Grove, CFRE
Brandy Grove, MBA, CFRE
Manager of Philanthropy - Prairie Heart Foundation


Tax ID: 37-1186514
Legal Name: Hospital Sisters of St. Francis Foundation, Inc.
d/b/a Prairie Heart Foundation