Mission-Driven: Adventist Health and Rideout's new Foundation President Excited to Connect With Community

A name does not qualify a person for a job. The quality of their character, depth of experience, and care for their craft determine their fitness for a particular role.

In the case of Patience Boudreaux, each of those factors ring incredibly true. That said, her name certainly doesn’t hurt, either.

Patience Boudreaux, MBA, CSPG, CFRE, has joined Adventist Health and Rideout as the hospital’s new Foundation President, effective April 15, 2024. Patience brings extensive expertise in annual giving, planned giving, and major gifts, and will play an integral role in connecting community members with the Adventist Health mission.

Patience has spent the last 13 years leading successful fundraising teams at Loma Linda University Health, University of Redlands, and Trinity University, with a particular focus in planned giving since 2015. She graduated from John Hopkins University, achieving a BA in Psychology and a minor in Entrepreneurship and Management. She then received her MBA from the Peter F. Drucker Graduate School of Management at Claremont Graduate University.

A Sense for Adventure

Originally from Texas, Patience grew up in Southern California as a product of a leap of faith on the part of her mother. They had never been to California before eventually settling in the small town of Lake Arrowhead but embraced the unknown with a sense of determination.

That mindset seems to have stuck with Patience. She has a self-described affinity for trying new things, whether it be a new restaurant in town or the sport of dragon boat racing. It is that same sense of adventure that led Patience to Loma Linda after a successful stint in higher education as a Director of Major Gifts for the University of Redlands.

While her role as the Director of Planned Giving shared similar responsibilities, healthcare was a new, unexplored space. Without hesitation, Patience embraced the challenge.

“I really loved being in healthcare,” Patience said. “I am never going to cure somebody personally. But I felt like I was playing a part in some way to make sure we had the resources to enable that caregiving to happen.”

Connection to Community

Patience said she enjoyed her time with Loma Linda and felt a real connection to the medical center’s purpose. When a close friend and Adventist Health employee encouraged her to explore an opportunity with Adventist Health and Rideout, though, Patience could not help but be intrigued.

“We both loved the mission of Loma Linda,” Patience said. “For (her friend), being at Adventist Health gave her a closer connection to community, and the ability to see an immediate impact through the work she was doing.

“When someone I know and trust has had a very rewarding experience here and describes this as a place where you can make a difference, that was the tipping point.”

One meeting with Chris Champlin, President of Adventist Health and Rideout, effectively sealed the deal. Patience said she saw firsthand how warmly he talked about his team, the excitement he fostered for the work they were doing and the change they were making in the community. It was a sincere discussion more than it was a sales pitch, but it convinced Patience that her path would lead to Rideout.

For Chris, the feeling was mutual. He said he was initially impressed by Patience’s wealth of experience and expertise but was hooked by her relentless devotion to her work.

“Patience has this unwavering passion for philanthropy, and it is truly inspiring. Her dedication to serving her community and her genuine commitment to making a difference shine through in everything she does,” Chris said. “We are incredibly fortunate to have her leading our foundation, and I have no doubt that under her leadership, we will continue to positively impact the lives of the people we care for."

That passion stems from Patience’s own experiences with philanthropy and charity. When her family lost their house in a forest fire, their surrounding community came together to lift them up. A homecooked meal. An extra bed to sleep on. An embrace to let her family know that they were not alone in their time of need.

“I have felt that in my life,” Patience said. “I have a sense of meaning about that, and I want to feel that about what I do.”

Creating an Impact

There is, of course, a numbers-oriented objective surrounding the task of fundraising, and Patience is well aware of that. If she can do her job well, the foundation can help ensure that innovative programs are launched, new initiatives are started, and the level of care in the community continues to improve.

On a daily basis, though, Patience’s reverence for planned giving lies in helping a donor find the perfect gift. Often, in the case of a memorial gift, that means helping someone find meaning in the face of loss.

“They are taking something that is a tragedy for them and turning it into something positive for others,” she said. “I get to be part of that.

“For someone to take that step and say, ‘I have lost a loved one, and I want others to suffer less as a result,’ - those are the moments where it truly has meaning.”

New Beginnings

Aside from being on the lookout for adoptable shelter dogs and new restaurants to check out (she is accepting recommendations for both), Patience’s first order of business is establishing herself as a resource to the people that Adventist Health and Rideout serve.

She knows how important it is to have a foundation that is engrained in the community it serves, and she plans to lead by example from day one.

“Chris wants me in front of people, and that is exactly where I want to be, too,” she said. “My no. 1 priority is introducing myself to people in the community, understanding their interests in the hospital, and finding out how I can help.”