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St. Luke's Carbon Campus President John Nespoli, left, with Joe and Debra Kay Bennett.

Joe and Debra Kay Bennett are passionate about supporting the communities where their business, Bennett Family Properties is located. They regularly contribute to and volunteer at the organizations that focus on enhancing the health and quality of life of its residents. This is paramount to the Bennetts, who have seen how people can suffer without access to quality medical care, education and other barriers to healthy living.

“Our community organizations are only as vital as we help them to be,” says Joe Bennett, whose company designs, constructs, leases and maintains several of the St. Luke’s outpatient facilities in and around Carbon County.

The Bennetts embraced the opportunity to work with St. Luke’s when the network rescued the struggling Blue Mountain Health System in 2018. “St. Luke’s came here and resuscitated the System, which was struggling financially, and they’re committed to helping keep this community healthy,” Joe says. “We wanted from day one to be part of the new St. Luke’s Carbon hospital which will make it convenient for people to receive high-quality care right near their home instead of being sent out of town. That’s important to Carbon County residents.” 

Joe and Debra Kay recently committed $200,000 through the Carbon County Community Foundation, to support St. Luke’s Carbon Campus Capital Campaign. The Bennetts are founding members of the Community Foundation, which also supports many local non-profit organizations, including literacy programs for St. Luke’s patients.

Their contribution has been recognized with the naming of three areas in the hospital -- the two fireplaces on the first floor of the new hospital -- one that is a focal point in the main lobby and the other in the dining area -- along with the Emergency Department Registration Lobby.

“The fireplaces can help create a tranquil environment to relieve stress for a visitor or family member awaiting results of a loved one’s test or procedure,” Joe says. As an EMT, he also supports Emergency Medical Services in Carbon County, so this area is one dear to him.

“We value aligning ourselves with folks that want to give back to the community,” Joe says.

“With St. Luke’s as the most prominent, essential and forward-thinking organization in Carbon County, there’s even more reason to support its ability to serve the community.”

Joe in particular is an ardent supporter of St. Luke’s, having been an occasional patient receiving what he describes as “superb care.” He has witnessed first-hand its patients-first culture, which stems from the organization’s steadfast commitment to the well-being of its employees. As a long-time entrepreneur, he admires and shares the value of this humanitarian approach in his own business and looks for it in the organizations with whom they partner. 

“Debra Kay and I believe that investing in St. Luke’s is investing in the health of this great region. Good health providers and good businesses relocating here go hand-in-hand in this often-challenged community. We now have a thriving medical system for our area, and we must play a role in helping ensure its success and longevity. That’s why we choose to support St. Luke’s and their endeavors in Carbon County.”