WELLINGTON, October 4, 2022 – The artist community within Wellington on the Lake (WOTL) recently came together in support of local healthcare and to honour the memory of a fellow resident and friend.

When Betty Grieve died in 2020, her husband Gil (now deceased) had many of her unfinished paintings in his possession. His wish was to use the paintings to raise funds for the Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Foundation (PECMHF) in her memory.

Betty was a founding member of the WOTL Art Club. Betty and her husband Gil had lived in and supported the Wellington on the Lake community for many years.

When Gil died, Jim Grieve (their son) offered the paintings (mostly landscapes and floral images) to the WOTL Art Group who decided to carry out Gil’s wish to have Betty’s paintings benefit our local hospital.

Members of the art group embarked on finishing the paintings then hosted a silent auction to raise funds. In total, 28 paintings were finished and placed into the auction raising $4,050. These proceeds will contribute to raising the remaining $6M to complete the Back the Build $27M campaign.

“The WOTL Art Group are an outstanding example of the community spirit we see in The County. On behalf of the entire hospital, its staff and patients and the Back the Build Campaign Cabinet. I want to thank the art group for their generosity,” said Shannon Coull, executive director of the PECMH Foundation. “Remembering loved ones in a manner that will help other people carries a special significance.”

Maureen Waller, on behalf of the WOTL Art Group is thrilled Betty’s art is Backing the Build for Prince Edward County’s new hospital.

“We are so pleased this special gift, in memory of Betty and Gil, will do what Gil intended and benefit the health of our patients and community for years to come,” she said. “We also find comfort in knowing that Betty’s work lives on and is being enjoyed by more than two dozen people.”

The Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Foundation is a charitable organization dedicated to raising funds to advance health care for the patients of the hospital and the people of Prince Edward County.

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Pictured in front of the WOTL Recreation Centre from left: Barbara McConnell, PECMHF board chairperson; WOTL Residents and Art Group Members Lewis Parker; Pam Smith; Jim Grieve; Maureen Waller and Carol Grieve; Dennis Darby, PECMHF board member and Shannon Coull, PECMHF executive director.