Community Engagement

Life Science Optics Team Assembles 150 Comfort Bags for Cancer Patients

Jul 26, 2023 by IDEX Health & Science

volunteers assemble comfort bags for cancer patients

In June, volunteers from our Life Science Optics team at Finger Lakes Instrumentation assembled Comfort Bags for community members undergoing chemotherapy treatment at the Pluta Cancer Center Foundation. Their mission is to support patients who are experiencing financial hardships due to their cancer diagnosis and to provide “Integrative Oncology & Wellness Programs to all patients, at no cost to the patient.” Katie Gaiek, an IDEX Health & Science Key Account Manager, organized the event where 150 Comfort Bags were assembled.

The Comfort Bag program is one of the most impactful programs that the Foundation provides as it touches every single patient receiving treatment at Pluta Cancer Center. Supplies for the bags were purchased using the $10k grant from the IDEX Foundation. The included items were based on feedback received from patients and providers since the program was started in 2017. The Pluta Cancer Center team, “hand delivers these bags to patients on the first day of treatment, making a difficult day a bit more bearable.” Over 430 Comfort Bags are gifted to patients annually.

Molly Grondin, Pluta Cancer Center Foundation Coordinator, said: “The Pluta Foundation thanks the IDEX employees and the generous grant from the IDEX Foundation for making all this possible for our community of patients.”

Learn more about the Pluta Cancer Center Foundation

Learn more about other IDEX Health & Science’s 2023 volunteer events