The Canton-Potsdam Hospital Foundation 

You don't have to be a physician or a skilled health care provider to save, sustain, and improve lives.  Our donors do it every day.  Their gifts to the Canton-Potsdam Hospital Foundation - whether in support of our annual campaign, special projects, or made as planned gifts and bequests - help our Hospital to acquire medical equipment, update technology, add services, and maintain and expand our facilities.

Here's how you can join with hundreds of others who support patient care at Canton-Potsdam Hospital.

The Linda Richards Society

Linda Richards (shown in the photo at top left), was America’s first nurse, born in West Potsdam in 1841.  She was one of five students enrolled in the first nurse-training program at New England Hospital for Women and Children.  They worked 16 hours a day, and slept in the wards along with their patients.  Pay was $1 per week, with 3 hours time off every 14 days.  Linda was the only student to complete the program, and in 1873 she received the first nursing diploma issued in the United States. Miss Richards went on to devote her life to serving others, as a nurse and nursing teacher. 

In her honor, our Foundation created the Linda Richards Society, which recognizes those who help others through their annual gifts to our Hospital.

Foster & French Society

Bequests from Henry Foster and Gilbert French created our Hospital in 1920, and today bequests continue to help us move forward.  Your bequest or planned gift can have a profound impact on the future health of our community. It's the "last, best way" to demonstrate your values and compassion. Please consider including the Hospital Foundation in your estate plans. We welcome you to contact our office for more information.


We encourage you to spend some time checking out the rest of our website.  And feel free to contact us if you have questions or would like to learn more about the Hospital Foundation.

Canton-Potsdam Hospital Foundation
50 Leroy Street
Potsdam, NY 13676
Phone:  315-261-5410
Email:  foundation@cphospital.org

Canton-Potsdam Hospital Foundation
Privacy Policy

Your privacy is important to us. We do not access protected patient information for any purposes. We do not and will not sell or trade our donors’ personal or contact information with anyone else. We do not sell or exchange mailing lists. Any donor’s request to remain anonymous is honored to every extent possible.