A group of 630 members of the Greater Lowell community broke out their best attire to support public health at the 13th annual Circle Health Ball for Community Health Initiatives Saturday, March 10, at the InterContinental Hotel in Boston.

The event featured dinner, a huge silent auction and dancing to the music of Nightshift. By the end of the night, a record total of $423,527 was raised to support grants for projects that address needs identified as public health priorities in the Greater Lowell and Merrimack Valley.

Grant requests were solicited for projects targeting mental health, asthma, substance use and prevention, physical activity, social determinants of health and access to healthy food.

This year’s winners are:

• UTEC - UTEC's "Core Competency Initiative” will formalize and measure the skills that young adults build to navigate life successfully by focusing on five key areas: Connection, Reflection, Health, Ambition and Power.
• Community Teamwork Inc. - Funding will expand the visibility and impact of CTI’s Farmers’ Market, increase the diversity of vendors to represent Lowell’s immigrant communities and provide transportation to populations that have traditionally had difficulty reaching the market.
• Megan’s House The grant will be used to support professional development for substance use disorder professionals to advance their knowledge of co-occurring mental health disorders. It will also assist bilingual staff earning licensed alcohol and drug certification better serve Latina residents.

In addition to these grants, a Fund-a-Need call for donations raised an additional $52,000 for Mill City Grows, which has committed to provide Lowell with in-school garden and nutrition education, donate 3,000 pounds of food to emergency food programs, conduct outreach events targeting low-income residents, distribute coupons for free or discounted vegetables at schools and events, and host Farm to Table cooking classes for students.

"Each year, the Circle Health Ball for Community Health Initiatives brings out the best in the Greater Lowell community, evidenced once again by this year’s overwhelming support," says Jody White, CEO of Circle Health and Lowell General Hospital. "These grants and Fund-a-Need will provide vital support four incredible organizations who are working every day to address some of the most pressing health concerns in our region. At Circle Health, we remain committed to forging strategic partnerships to improve the overall health of all the communities we serve."

The Ball was once again hosted by event co-chairpersons Dr. Jeremy Moses and Dr. Lija Joseph. The Diamond Level sponsor was Enterprise Bank, and Sapphire Level sponsors were Commonwealth Radiology Associates, Merrimack Valley Emergency Associates and Remedium Pharmacy.

The Circle Health Ball was established in 2006 by Lowell General Hospital, its dedicated medical staff and concerned members of the community to generate awareness and funds to help address significant health issues facing our community.

Merrimack Valley residents in need will gain access to healthcare, education, and quality clothing and necessities thanks to more than 600 guests who attended the 14th annual Circle Health Ball for Community Health Initiatives at the InterContinental Hotel in Boston on Saturday, March 9, 2019.

This year’s event raised more than $426,000 to fund grants for non-profit programs addressing social determinants of health and access to healthy foods, both identified as public health priorities in Greater Lowell. This year’s grants will fund initiatives by the International Institute of New England, Lowell Middlesex Academy Charter School and Project LEARN.

This event started 14 years ago with a group of like-minded, philanthropic physicians who were looking for a way to give back to the community in a meaningful manner, and it has stayed true to its roots,” said Jody White, CEO of Circle Health and Lowell General Hospital. “When the Greater Lowell community comes together to help our friends and neighbors in need, great things happen.”

In addition to the grants, event co-chairs Dr. Wassim Mazraany, Chief of Surgery at Lowell General, and Dr. Ana Gunturi, a medical oncologist at Lowell General, asked guests to contribute to a special cause through a live, “Fund-a-Need” fundraising drive. This year, the recipient is Catie’s Closet, a Dracut-based non-profit that works to improve school attendance by providing in-school resources of clothing and toiletries to children living in poverty. The call for donations was answered in a spectacular way, raising $70,000 for the charity, surpassing last year’s record $50,000 raised for Mill City Grows.

“This money is going make an enormous impact on the lives of young students growing up in poverty in Lowell,” says Mickey Cockrell, Executive Director of Catie’s Closet. “With access to quality clothing and toiletries at their schools, these students are more likely to come to school every day and graduate.”

Here is a closer look at the initiatives that received grant funding this year:

• The International Institute of New England, a Lowell-based social service agency for new Americans and resettled refugees, will use its grant to support the Refugee Healthcare Initiative, which improves access to healthcare for this population through advocacy and individual case management.
• The Lowell Middlesex Academy Charter School (LMACS), a small public charter high school that provides a skills-driven, high standards curriculum to at-risk and challenged youth, will fund a health and wellness program called “Empowering Teens for a Healthier Tomorrow.” The program will provide students with an on-site teen health clinic, nutritional consultation, health workshops and yoga.
• Project LEARN, which works with Lowell Public Schools to fund innovative programs that teach students vital skills for college, career and life, will use its grant to fund scholarships for 40 students to attend its “Got Dirt” IDEA Camp summer workshop to learn about nutrition, harvest plants and use them to prepare healthy meals with local chefs.

The Circle Health Ball was established in 2006 by Lowell General Hospital, its dedicated medical staff and concerned members of the community to generate awareness and funds to help address significant health issues facing our community.

Advancing Health Equity: The 2025 Lowell General Hospital Ball

The annual Lowell General Hospital Ball for Community Health Initiatives was held on March 1, 2025, at the InterContinental Boston. The event brought together healthcare professionals, community leaders and supporters from the Merrimack Valley and raised an impressive $52,250 for The Wish Project.

Each year, the Ball raises funds for a selected nonprofit serving residents in the Merrimack Valley. Believing that families can only escape the social service system when their basic needs are met, The Wish Project provides essential home and baby goods to those facing homelessness or other crises. This immediate support alleviates stress in the short term while helping to end homelessness in the long term by supporting families on their journey towards long-term residency.

Since 2006, the Lowell General Hospital Ball has demonstrated the hospital’s dedication to community well-being, fueled by support from its medical staff and local partners. This year's event was co-chaired by Drs. Miret Ibrahim and Allen Hwang, who brought their leadership and dedication to the cause.

Congratulations to everyone who made this event a success, directly contributing to improved health equity in the Greater Lowell area.

When Dolores (Lori) Driscoll retired from Standish Investment Management after a successful career, she knew that she wanted to give back. In 2014, after volunteering for almost 20 years with Tufts Medical Center’s Board of Governors, a group of business and community leaders who serve as ambassadors for the Medical Center, she attended a presentation by Mark Sarnak, MD, the hospital’s Chief of Nephrology. During the presentation, Dr. Sarnak shared a statistic that is not widely known outside of the medical community: one in every nine Americans suffers from kidney damage or low functioning kidneys that can lead to debilitating and life-threatening chronic kidney disease (CKD). There and then, Lori knew where she wanted to make her impact.

“I was so surprised to learn of the pervasiveness of kidney disease. It is a silent disease. People are usually unaware that they have it until it becomes serious and harder to control,” says Lori.

Since that fortuitous presentation by Dr. Sarnak, Lori has supported research in CKD through the creation of the Driscoll Family Endowed Fund in Nephrology. She eventually recruited her daughter, Christie Blier, a vice president at Goldman Sachs, to join the Board of Governors and to help establish their family’s philanthropic legacy.

“Given the prevalence of kidney disease, I was also surprised that no one had ever asked me to donate to kidney research,” says Lori. “So when I learned of Tufts Medical Center’s long history of preeminence in nephrology, I saw an important opportunity to support clinical trials and fundamental research, including studies on the link between kidney disease and other diseases, especially cardiac disease. As a family, we are pleased to support the critical work of Dr. Mark Sarnak, Dr. Lesley Inker, Director of the Kidney and Blood Pressure Center, and the entire Division of Nephrology.”

Lori established the Driscoll Family Endowed Fund in Nephrology in 2017 with a gift of $100,000. The endowment provides ongoing support for Dr. Sarnak and his team to advance the most necessary and promising research on kidney disease. Lori and Christie make annual gifts to the fund, knowing that its growth will only increase the difference it makes in the lives of patients living with kidney disease./p>

Says Dr. Sarnak, “The Division of Nephrology is incredibly grateful for the financial stewardship that the Driscoll family provides through this endowment and their gifts each year. Their unwavering support of kidney disease treatment and research at Tufts Medical Center has had a profound impact on our ability to advance patient care, research, education, and even, public health policy."

In addition to their personal commitment to raise funds for the Medical Center, Lori and Christie had used their gifts to create a matching gift opportunity for Giving Tuesday in 2019 and will do so again this year.

We want to know, why will you give?

Make a donation today

Meredith Casey was only 11 years old when she suffered a life-changing brain injury on Dec. 15, 2015. She had no way of knowing that her accident would launch her into starting her own nonprofit – Mighty Meredith - to give back to the medical community, raise awareness of traumatic brain injuries, and promote kind acts everywhere.

A fifth grader at the time, Meredith hit her head in a fluke accident; she was picking up her homework off the kitchen floor and, as she stood up, she struck her head on the granite countertop. There was no bruising or bleeding, but rather an immediate onset of headaches that continued over the course of the next few days.

"My school nurse and pediatrician thought that I likely had a concussion," Meredith said. "But over the next three months, my health deteriorated significantly with no known cause."

It was at Tufts Medicine Pediatrics that the Pediatric Neurology specialists discovered that Meredith had a blood clot at the base of her brain, also known as sagittal sinus thrombosis. The blood clot also caused a myriad of medical conditions such as chronic, debilitating pain and loss of balance, leaving Meredith unable to walk without a cane. Hospitalized on and off from April to June 2016, Meredith was under the care of a multidisciplinary team from across Tufts Medicine Pediatrics, including neurology, hematology, ophthalmology, otolaryngology, interventional and physical therapy. Though the blot clot itself resolved, Meredith still endures chronic pain and receives long-term medical care from her team.

Inspired by the kindness from the community, doctors, and child life specialists who became an integral part of her life, Meredith wanted to give back to the community in some way. She first started by donating her birthday gifts and hosting a bake sale to raise money and purchase gift cards for the Hematology Clinic at Tufts Medicine Pediatrics. But she soon had her sights set on bigger acts of kindness. Within months, she launched the Mighty Meredith Project, a nonprofit organization built on three pillars: mighty smart, mighty giving, and mighty kind. The motto: "Be Kind, It's Good for the Mind."

"I have personally benefited from the generosity of a stranger's donations during difficult visits and hospitalizations," Meredith said. "I wanted to help bring joy to those who may be in a similar situation by giving back."

Now, at 16-years old and a sophomore in high school, Meredith continues to rally her friends, family, and community to promote kindness and raise awareness of traumatic brain injuries. Meredith's "Fill the Box" campaign is an annual toy and gift card drive that benefits children who are hospitalized during the holidays and families who have fallen on hard times due to the cost of affording medical care. Last month, the Mighty Meredith Project delivered cheer in the form of hundreds of toys and gift cards to the Child Life program to help pediatric patients and their families throughout the hospital. They also provided a generous gift of $3,500 to Tufts Medicine Pediatrics.

"We are very grateful to Meredith and the Mighty Meredith Project," said John Gaitanis, MD, Chief of Pediatric Neurology at Tufts Medicine Pediatrics. "Many of the families who benefit from the 'Fill the Box' campaign are desperately struggling with either medical or financial challenges and would not be able to celebrate the holidays otherwise. To see the faces of those children and families light up is an incredible experience for us as their care team."

Meredith also banded with her community to write 500 "thank you" cards, each with a $5 Dunkin' gift cards to frontline healthcare workers and first responders. In March, during Traumatic Brain Injury Awareness Month, the Mighty Meredith Project donates hundreds of bike helmets to the Pediatric Neurology Department at Tufts Medicine Pediatrics, as part of the non-profit's "Helmets for Heads" campaign.

Another kindness initiative: Meredith sends notes of encouragement to those who may be suffering from traumatic brain injury in silence. Nominations are received via the non-profit's website, and Meredith sends handwritten notes to individuals across the country, sharing her own personal experiences to let them know they are not alone in having a hidden injury. And, in Meredith's hometown of North Reading, Massachusetts, the Mighty Meredith Project offers a scholarship to a graduating senior who has made kindness a part of their character.

"To me, kindness is not something big or overdone, but rather small things that can really make a difference in someone's day," Meredith said. "It is a nod, a gesture, a hello, a card, a note, or any single act that has an impact."

With a focus on the "small things," Meredith has made a profound impact on the lives of our patients, families, our staff, and her community. We applaud Meredith for her courage throughout her health journey and her leadership as a changemaker, and we thank her and the Mighty Meredith Project for their enduring partnership and support.

We want to know, why will you give

Make a donation today