Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center Foundation received a donation of $2,780 in February from Collegiate Peaks Bank.
The donation funds are allocated towards a scholarship recently renamed for longtime community member Charles âCharlieâ Forster.Â
Forster, who died in January, served as chair on the Foundation board for more than 15 years.Â
âCharlie was passionate about the hospital and the HRRMC Foundation,â said Lezlie Burkley, HRRMC Foundation Director. âWe are grateful for the contributions he made in both time and resources, and we want to give to the future of healthcare in his name.â
Two $2,500 scholarships will be awarded to current college students who plan to continue their studies in a healthcare field during the 2021 fall semester and who maintain a minimum 3.2 grade point average.Â
Salida, Chaffee remember contributions of Charlie Forster chaffeecountytimes.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from chaffeecountytimes.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The passing of Charles âCharlieâ Forster, 72, on Jan. 28 left a void that is being felt not just in the community, but throughout the region.Â
Probably best known as president of Collegiate Peaks Bank, he wore many âhatsâ with his involvement with the Chaffee County Fair, Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center, Salida Aspen Concerts, Salida SteamPlant and numerous other organizations and causes.
Dan Downing, former HRRMC board chairman and friend, had the pleasure of introducing Forster as the fifth member of the HRRMC Hall of Fame in 2016.Â
Downing said, âWeâve been friends for 30 years and have gotten to the point where we were like brothers. Weâve served on boards, fished and traveled together, had meals in each otherâs homes nearly weekly for years â all the things friends do that keep relationships thriving.
Buena Vista and Chaffee County lost a leader and friend with the death of Charles âCharlieâ Forster, 72, following a long battle against a type of lymphoma cancer.
A family friend confirmed late Thursday that Forster, the former president of Collegiate Peaks Bank died peacefully Thursday at his home in Salida.
Better known as Charlie, Forster recently retired after a 50-year career in banking, the last 30 years in Chaffee County.
While banking was his business, he immediately became involved in his new community when he moved to Salida in 1985. For many years, he ran the Buena Vista Collegiate Peaks Bank.
He had an enduring commitment to health care and was inducted into the Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Centerâs Hall of Fame in 2016.