Brooke and Adam Lillie hold their daughter, Lauren, and her Beads of Courage beads, in the UAB Continuing Care Nursery (read Brooke's story). The Beads of Courage program is funded by the UAB Auxiliary, with funds in part from regular payroll-deduction events in the North Pavilion and West Pavilion. Photo by Hannah EcholsWhether you work in the medical center or only pass through on your way to appointments, you have probably seen the clothing and merchandise sales that take place regularly in North Pavilion and West Pavilion.
These sales serve a purpose for UAB employees, patients and UAB Hospital, notes UAB Medicine volunteer coordinator Jodie Herrin. Every volunteer is a member of the UAB Auxiliary, which has the mission of forwarding the work of UAB Medicine and bringing comfort, hope and healing to UAB patients and care teams and supporting the medical center.
Five times per year, the UAB Auxiliary hosts payroll-deduction events open to all eligible full-time regular and part-time regular UAB Medicine and UAB campus employees, “where they can shop for their scrubs and presents for the holidays, and payroll will split that over four paychecks,” Herrin said. Throughout the year, the Auxiliary also hosts local vendors who sell homemade cakes, candles, snacks and other items. (The next uniform sale will be May 12-14 in the West Pavilion atrium; there will also be a one-day uniform sale at UAB Highlands on May 5. The next general merchandise sale will be Aug. 3-6.)
Hospital volunteers staff a uniform sale at the North Pavilion. These sales allow employees to split the cost of purchases over four paychecks. They also provide 20 percent of proceeds to help UAB Auxiliary support patient-focused programs across the medical center. Photo courtesy Jodie HerrinAll of these events also serve as fundraisers for patient-service programs supported by the UAB Auxiliary, Herrin says. Twenty percent of sales in payroll-deduction events go to the UAB Auxiliary, along with 15 percent of sales from small vendors. Over the years, many departments have created special initiatives to meet needs they see in their patient populations, and these programs rely on outside support. “This is where the Auxiliary comes in, to provide funding support so that these crucial initiatives have the most impact where they are needed,” Herrin said.
“The payroll-deduction sales are always very popular,” Herrin said. “And I think it’s important for employees to know that they are giving back when they come and shop.”
“These events are a great example of how our UAB community comes together to support patients beyond the walls of the hospital room,” said John Brad Morrow, associate vice president for Food, Nutrition and Guest Services at UAB Medicine. “The funds raised help sustain programs that bring hope and support during some of the most difficult moments in a patient’s journey. The UAB Hospital Auxiliary plays an integral part of the patient experience.”
The UAB Auxiliary fully funds a number of programs and provides regular and meaningful support to many others, Herrin says.
When you shop at a hospital sale, you are supporting such programs as:
Holiday Meal Program: The Auxiliary provides a free lunch, along with connection and support, for any caregiver of a hospitalized patient on Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter.
Hospital volunteers at a Holiday Meal Program event. Photo courtesy Jodie Herrin
Beads of Courage: To mark milestones for preterm newborns during their stays in the UAB Regional Newborn Intensive Care Unit and Continuing Care Nursery, families receive meaningful beads that document their baby’s journey. “By the time these babies leave, Mom has a basket filled with these cool beads,” Herrin said. “I’ve seen people hang them on strings in their nurseries or put them in glass lamps. It is a way for them to remember the braveness of their child and the journey that their family has been through.”
Transplant Patient Lodging Support: After discharge, transplant patients often return to the hospital daily for weeks of follow-up care, which can be particularly costly for those living outside Birmingham. The Auxiliary helps by covering a significant portion of these patients’ lodging expenses, ensuring they have a comfortable, convenient place to stay.
“The Auxiliary also supports three different clothes closets that are operating across the medical center,” Herrin said: the Compassion Closet in the UAB Emergency Department, the closet at the Center for Psychiatric Medicine and the closet at UAB Highlands. Although each of these initiatives relies on donated clothing, they need funding to purchase undergarments “and other items that you want to make sure are new,” Herrin said.
All told, the Auxiliary supports nearly 20 programs and initiatives.
Each July, the Auxiliary Board also considers new applications from across the medical center for financial support. “Our units always have really cool ideas on how they can better serve our patients and meet their needs,” Herrin said. “I tell them, ‘If you have a program you want to do for our patients, come and talk to us.’”
Contact Jodie Herrin with questions at
Vendors interested in fundraising for the Auxiliary should send information about their business, including photos of products and event setup, and a list of products with pricing, to