MARGE AND RICK VOLPE

Marge and Rick Volpe are people of action—the kind of action that creates opportunities for people to lead better lives. While they were raising their four young children in the late 1980s, Rick founded Asset Planning Services, a wealth management firm based in Harleysville, Pennsylvania. Amidst the busyness of family life and building a business, Marge and Rick found time to prioritize their faith and service projects, including annual mission trips to the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico.

Their shared love for the outdoors took shape in the stewardship of public lands through multiple trips with Wilderness Volunteers in the western United States. Through Opportunity International, the Volpes traveled to Rwanda to observe firsthand the power of microfinance. “I got such a good feeling about humanity,” Rick recalls about their time in Rwanda. “The microloans are a powerful way to open the door for opportunity, dignity, and hope.” Closer to home, Marge now volunteers regularly at the Indian Valley Library, the Pregnancy Resource Clinic of North Penn, and at Calvary Church of Souderton.

When working with clients at Asset Planning Services, Rick and his team ensure they plan for a solid financial future in retirement. “We also encourage them to consider what their wealth can ultimately do for others, and not just for themselves,” says Rick. “Our standard client review commentary includes a quote by Marcus Aurelius: ‘The only wealth which you will keep forever is the wealth you have given away.’ This is something we take to heart.”

As pragmatic as they are philanthropic, Marge and Rick consider access to high-quality healthcare an important part of their future and the future of people in the community. “Our first encounter with Doylestown Hospital was the birth of our younger grandson—a joyful occasion!” says Marge. “Our daughter-in-law, Alexii, had a wonderful birth experience and she spoke so highly of how kind and caring the staff was.” Not long after, the Volpes readily accepted an invitation to learn more about ONE VISION: The Campaign for Doylestown Health from friend and colleague Richard Clark, One Vision Campaign Chair.

“It was really compelling to hear what Doylestown Health had planned for the new Cardiovascular and Critical Care Pavilion and beyond,” says Rick. The Volpes’ generous gifts played an integral part in reaching a major milestone of the One Vision Campaign with the opening of the Woodall Center for Heart and Vascular Care to patients in January of 2020. Opening its doors proved timelier than anyone could have anticipated.

Just months after welcoming the first patients to the new, state-ofthe-art facility, urgent need arose for additional patient capacity due to a new pandemic disease—COVID-19. The flexible features of the new universal, private patient rooms in the Della Penna CVICU/ICU allowed them to be temporarily re-designated as general ICU/IMU rooms. This enabled the establishment of three separate units within the hospital for isolating and treating COVID-19 patients at different levels of severity separate from traditional ICU/IMU patients. Such real-time flexibility allowed multidisciplinary critical care teams to leverage innovative treatment protocols and focus solely on the patients’ needs.

“Throughout the history of Doylestown Health, support from our community has been nothing short of extraordinary,” says Jim Brexler, President and CEO, Doylestown Health, “and our ability to rise to this challenge is a direct result of our incredible relationship with the people in our community and their willingness to step forward and invest in us.”

Laura Wortman, Vice President and Chief Development Officer, adds, “We are so grateful to the Volpes. Their gifts, combined with others, enabled us to open the Woodall Center for Heart and Vascular Care as we planned, and keep us on track with our projections to open the Clark Center for Critical Care Medicine in the spring of 2021.” As researchers learn more about COVID-19, treatment protocols continue to evolve at Doylestown Hospital. “By designating their gifts to our Second Century Fund,” Wortman continues, “Marge and Rick’s gifts have given us the flexibility to meet our most urgent needs without delay.”

Together, Marge and Rick find deep meaning in their support of Doylestown Health and the way their gifts are put to use to help others. They cite a favorite verse from Proverbs to show the deep connection between their faith and their commitment to philanthropy: “Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it.”

“We truly feel honored and blessed to give back,” say the Volpes, “and we trust the leadership of Doylestown Health to do what’s best for the patients and the community.”