Anne Johnston, Office of Corporate Communications University of Rochester Medicine Thompson Health / September 24, 2026
CANANDAIGUA – The recent “Twilight in the Trees”galahosted by the F.F. Thompson Foundation raised more than $300,000 to support six capital projects.
With Genesee Construction as the presenting sponsor and 300 people in attendance, the event was held Sept. 3 at Hotel Canandaigua. Doug Emblidge served as the emcee, and live music was provided by Dave Turner and The Rolling Heads.
Thompson’s capital projects total $21 million and include:
- The 12-apartment memory care addition at the assisted living community of Clark Meadows in Canandaigua
- A new MRI machine recently installed in F.F. Thompson Hospital’s Diagnostic Imaging Department
- A new fluoroscopy suite, also in the Diagnostic Imaging Department
- An upcoming expansion of The Birthing Center at the hospital
- A new location in Honeoye Falls, with both primary care and urgent care, slated to open in 2027
- A second MRI suite, scheduled to open in 2028
“Together, these essential investments will strengthen our healthcare system while laying the groundwork for future hospital expansion,” said F.F. Thompson Foundation Director Heather Rickett.
“These are not optional upgrades,” she added. “They are essential investments in the health of our community.”
Although Thompson Health is an affiliate of University of Rochester Medicine, the nonprofit health system is responsible for its own fundraising and its own debt.
Rickett said the Foundation is grateful to all of the gala’s sponsors, volunteers, and attendees for their support of the six capital projects. She said once those are complete, Thompson plans to undertake a significant expansion of the hospital, which will include a new wing that houses additional private rooms for inpatients.
As Thompson Health President/CEO Michael F. Stapleton, Jr. explained in a video shown at the gala, the hospital expansion is designed to meet a growing need.
“We are so fortunate to have the community we have, and the trust from our community, which means more and more people are coming to us for their health care,” Stapleton said. “We’re boarding patients in our Emergency Department every day, and we need more beds.”
To make a gift benefiting the capital projects currently underway within Thompson, email Heather_Rickett@URMC.
Photo: With F.F. Thompson Foundation Director Heather Rickett looking on, emcee Doug Emblidge speaks during “Twilight in the Trees,” Thompson Health’s annual gala. Held at Hotel Canandaigua, the event raised over $300,000.
