The Paul R. Nardoni Foundation, a non-profit organization that has been supporting cancer patients and their families for over 20 years, has announced that it will merge into the Somerset Health Care Foundation, the fundraising arm for Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) Somerset, an RWJBarnabas Health facility.
The Paul R. Nardoni Foundation was founded by Paul’s family to honor the Readington Township resident who died in 2001 at the age of 32 after a five-year battle with Hodgkin’s disease and carries on the legacy and “carpe diem” spirit of its namesake.
Since 2002, the Paul R. Nardoni Foundation has donated more than $625,000 to RWJUH Somerset. The foundation’s generosity helped fund the Paul R. Nardoni Oncology Pavilion (“Paul’s Place”), a 35-bed inpatient unit at the hospital, and the Steeplechase Cancer Center, a state-of-the-art outpatient facility located on the hospital’s campus. The foundation’s Special Needs Fund has also provided more than $50,000 in aid to cancer patients at the Steeplechase Cancer Center.
With the merger of the two foundations, Ellen Nardoni, Paul’s wife and a founding trustee of the Paul R. Nardoni Foundation, will join the Somerset Health Care Foundation’s Board of Trustees in 2023 where she will continue to champion Paul’s legacy. Proceeds from the merger will support “Paul’s Place” at RWJUH Somerset.
“For the past 20 years, we have been proud to partner with the Paul R. Nardoni Foundation to enhance the services we provide to cancer patients and their families, from ensuring that patients and their families have comfortable overnight accommodations to helping patients with cancer pay for medication, utilities, groceries and other household expenses,” said Paul Hubert, chair of the Somerset Health Care Foundation’s Board of Trustees. “We are excited to welcome them to the Somerset Health Care Foundation and continue to advance cancer care in Central New Jersey.”
Roseann Nardoni, Paul’s mother and Chairman added, “We are proud that Somerset Health Care Foundation will continue to support the community by delivering better patient experiences and aid to those who need financial support while dealing with cancer. It is a natural next step for us to blend resources to ensure this support moving forward. We are thrilled that Ellen will represent our mission and preserve the ‘Carpe Diem’ legacy inspired by Paul.”
Somerset Health Care Foundation is a non-profit organization created to solicit and administer charitable funding on behalf of Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Somerset. Gifts to Somerset Health Care Foundation help enhance the hospital’s facilities, technologies and patient care to improve the health of its community.
For more information about Somerset Health Care Foundation, visit www.rwjbh.org/somersetgiving or call 908-685-2885.