Skaggs Foundation recognizes Herschend’s commitment to local cancer care
Sherry Herschend, a pioneer in the Ozarks and widely known for her involvement in Silver Dollar City, was honored recently with Skaggs Foundation’s Legacy Award. The award recognized Herschend’s longtime commitment to improving access to healthcare in Stone and Taney counties.
“Prior to 2007 when we opened the cancer center here in Branson, patients had to commute to Springfield,” said CoxHealth Cancer Center Branson Director Ben Morris.
Cancer patients needing radiation treatment often require treatments five times a week for weeks at a time. Radiation treatment is provided by a high powered X-ray machine, known as a linear accelerator.
“For most hospitals, the linear accelerator is the most expensive piece of equipment,” Morris said. “Without this equipment though, we didn’t have a cancer center.”
“Our community came together to make the Branson cancer center possible and one of the biggest champions was Sherry Herschend,” said Skaggs Foundation President Meghan Connell. “Sherry provided funds to purchase the very first linear accelerator for Cox Branson.”
“Sherry’s major donation to the cancer center was the trigger, it really was the game changer that allowed the cancer center to purchase the equipment and bring us to the forefront of services here in the Ozarks,” said Bob Cox, of Cox Medical Center Branson board of directors.
While Herschend’s generosity helped bring cancer care to Branson years ago, her generosity and care for the community continues to keep quality care in the Ozarks.
“What’s so wonderful about Sherry’s commitment to (Skaggs) Foundation is that she’s not just a one-time giver, she has supported the Foundation for years and she continues to be integral in the part of planning and funding and future of the Foundation,” Cox said. “Sherry is so deserving for the fact that she was the catalyst that helped get the cancer center going here at Cox Medical Center Branson, and within the last year, we have received a new CT Scanner and a new linear accelerator,” Connell said. “If it wasn’t for Sherry Herschend, her vision, her giving soul, I don’t know if we’d be where we are today.”
SKAGGS FOUNDATION 2021 LEGACY – YouTube
