“PeaceHealth has played a meaningful role in the lives of everyone I love."

The future of healthcare is taking shape in meaningful ways: a family finding care closer to home, a patient receiving support in their preferred language, a barrier removed before it becomes an obstacle. When local organizations come together with a shared commitment to community health, new possibilities emerge. Access grows. Services expand. And a healthier future becomes something the community can build together. 

Ask Jane Carten to name the moments that shaped her family’s care and a surprising number of them happened inside PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center. It's where she first held her son. It's where she sat beside the people she loves most, waiting for news and learning to live on the other side of it.

That is the thing about community hospitals. They don't stay at arm's length. They become a part of your family generation after generation. And Whatcom County's population is growing, which means St. Joseph has to grow with it. 

With the Peter Paulsen Pavilion breaking ground in October 2025, that vision is now taking shape — expanding cardiovascular services, strengthening emergency care and creating greater capacity for women's and children's services. When complete, the Pavilion will mean more people can receive advanced, specialized care right here and fewer of them making the long, anxious drive south when the stakes are highest. Investments like this materialize when people decide to lean in and take responsibility for the future. Jane Carten is one of those people, and her reasons run deeper than a single gift. 

"I brought my son into the world at St. Joseph, and I've sat at the bedside of the people I love most on their hardest days," she said. "Some of the biggest moments of my life happened inside those walls. You don't forget that. You want to make sure it's there for the next family."

She isn't the first in her family to feel that pull. Healthcare doesn’t sustain itself, it has to be invested in generation after generation. Technology advances, the buildings age, population doubles and someone must keep showing up for it. Jane's mother once led the PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center Foundation Board. So did her aunt. Today, Jane sits on the same board.

As CEO of Saturna Capital, Jane oversees the company’s daily operations and steers the firm's philanthropy. Since 2023, Saturna Capital has supported the Stronger Together campaign, cardiovascular services and Women’s and Children’s Services at PeaceHealth St. Joseph, because a healthier Whatcom County is worth building for today’s families and future generations.

"PeaceHealth has played a meaningful role in the lives of everyone I love," she said.

When asked about her philosophy behind community investment, she reflects on her father Nick Kaiser’s principles: stewardship, responsibility, the long view. It's the kind of philosophy that treats "long-term" as a moral position. 

"I think it is important as leaders in the community that we all take some responsibility for wellness here," she said.

To her, healthcare is one of the smartest investments to make. Good care holds families together. It draws employers. It's the difference between a region that limps along and one that thrives for generations. Because a growing region deserves a hospital that grows with it. 

That's the future Jane keeps investing in. Because she knows real change doesn't happen when organizations work alone. It happens when a community decides that every person deserves the chance to be healthy and works together to make it so. 

"We'll have upgraded facilities that match the growth in our population," she said. "Not as many people will have to travel to Seattle for state-of-the-art healthcare, and that’s meaningfully significant."

Jane’s philosophy is one that reminds us that building a healthier community isn't a job for the hospital alone. It takes providers, employers, philanthropists and community leaders all pulling in the same direction, at the same time.

At PeaceHealth, we are thankful for partners who stand with us in this work. Together, we are creating healthier communities and building a future where exceptional care is close to home. 

About PeaceHealth Foundations: PeaceHealth, based in Vancouver, Wash., is a non-profit Catholic health system offering care to communities in Washington, Oregon and Alaska. Since 1890, PeaceHealth has been guided by a Mission of healing and compassion. Today, PeaceHealth Foundations carry forward that legacy — powered by philanthropy and grounded in community. As the philanthropic partner to PeaceHealth’s nine medical centers and more than 160 clinics, we help expand access, advance technology and empower caregivers to provide exceptional and compassionate care. Every gift ensures that outstanding care continues to reach families, friends and neighbors throughout the Northwest. Today, PeaceHealth is the legacy of the founding Sisters and continues with a spirit of respect, stewardship, collaboration and social justice in fulfilling its Mission. Discover the impact of philanthropy at peacehealth.org/foundation.