Tree of Love Ornaments Now Available, Proceeds Benefit Hospital Foundation

KEARNEY & GRAND ISLAND–Honor a special loved one this holiday season with a personalized Christmas ornament for CHI Health’s annual Tree of Love. Sponsored by the Foundations at CHI Health Good Samaritan and CHI Health St. Francis, this cherished tradition offers a meaningful way to remember those who have touched our lives while supporting the hospital’s healing mission.

The Tree of Love will be on display at both hospitals starting Dec. 4 throughout the Christmas season.

The community is invited to order an acrylic '2025 snow globe' ornament engraved with a personalized message memorializing someone special. Ornaments can also mark a special anniversary, commemorate a new baby, celebrate a couple’s first Christmas or other milestones. Each ornament costs $20. All proceeds benefit either the Good Samaritan or St. Francis Foundation.

The public is invited to attend a blessing ceremony for the ornaments and the Tree of Love on Thursday, Dec. 4, at 11:30 a.m. The ceremony will be held at both hospital locations–in the West Tower Lobby at Good Samaritan and in the main lobby at St. Francis.

At Good Samaritan in Kearney, during the blessing ceremony, families will be invited to hang their sponsored ornaments on the tree. Families may collect their ornaments at the end of the season. Any ornaments remaining on the tree after Jan. 6 will be hung on the Good Samaritan Tree of Love each year.

To sponsor an ornament for the Good Samaritan Tree of Love, visit give.chihealth.com/GSF-TOL or call the Foundation at 308-865-2705. The order deadline is Nov. 21.

All proceeds from the Good Samaritan Tree of Love will support the hospital’s Ambulance Replacement Project. A few of the aging ambulances in the Good Samaritan EMS fleet have reached their suggested lifespan and are in need of replacement. Good Samaritan EMS ambulances are used for 911 calls, long distance transports and can be seen on standby at structure fires and home sporting events in the area.

“Christmas offers us a chance to reflect, appreciate our blessings and commemorate those who have impacted our lives. We are deeply grateful and truly humbled to share in the memories honored by our Tree of Love,” stated Cindi Richter, director of the Good Samaritan Foundation.

At St. Francis in Grand Island, families may take home their sponsored ornaments after the blessing ceremony. Any remaining ornaments will be hung on the St. Francis Tree of Love each year.

To sponsor an ornament for the St. Francis Tree of Love, visit give.chihealth.com/SFF-TOL or call the Foundation at 308-398-5400. The order deadline is Nov. 24.

All proceeds from the St. Francis Tree of Love will support Project Care, the hospital’s patient assistance fund, to help patients and their families with needs related to their medical care, such as medications, hotel accommodations, meals and others.

“The generosity of our donors is truly invaluable. Their contributions are instrumental in our mission to make the healing presence of God known in our world by improving the health of the people we serve,” says Melissa Griffith, director of the St. Francis Foundation.