It’s a warmer-than-usual November afternoon in Regina. Leona Grzebinski sits in a well-lit bedroom at her retirement residence trying to recount the last 32 years of her life.

“I have to go back and think a long way,” she laughs. “So much has changed in the last few decades.”

Leona is right. She’s transitioned through several jobs, including one at Pasqua Hospital. She’s witnessed the birth of grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She’s also suffered the loss of her husband of over 60 years. One of the few things that hasn’t changed is the 91-year-old’s monthly donations to Hospitals of Regina Foundation. Her first donation was in 1985, a tradition she started with her late husband, Edward.

Leona, a Kenaston native, came to Regina for work after World War II. It was in Regina she met and married Edward. The couple decided to move to Ituna after Edward was offered a job in the town as a postmaster. But over 40 years later, they found themselves back in Regina again. This time, it was because of Edward’s poor health.

“He had a very severe heart problem and Ituna was too far away from the health-care services we needed,” she says. “We couldn’t imagine going anywhere else besides the Regina General Hospital.”

Edward went on to have four bypass surgeries before his passing in 2010. Leona’s health wasn’t spared either. She has had three different surgeries since their return to Regina – one for breast cancer, another for bladder cancer, and one more to remove a cancerous tumo

Despite everything she’s been through, she speaks fondly of her and Edward’s experience at the hospitals in Regina.

“The doctors and nurses were wonderful; we always had a good rapport with them. I’ve had bladder infections in recent years. If it wasn’t for the exceptional services they provided, I don’t know what would have happened,” she says.

Leona knows just how important donations to Hospitals of Regina Foundation are for keeping good health care local. After all, she witnessed first-hand the benefits of community investments in the hospitals. That’s why she decided to donate to the hospitals through the Foundation.

“Edward and I started donating monthly because we decided it was time to start paying back for the care we received,” she adds. “It’s the best we could do, and I enjoy continuing the tradition.”