On Wednesday, May 7, Center for Hospice Care (CHC) hosted its 40th annual Helping Hands Award Dinner at the Hilton Garden Inn’s Gillespie Conference and Special Event Center in South Bend. Over 240 business executives, community members, and CHC staff turned out for this landmark celebration.
This year’s installment saw five previous Helping Hands Award recipients in attendance, a first for the series. The 2025 Helping Hands Award Dinner was held in honor of Dan Fitzpatrick, "the King of Quality." Fitzpatrick – founder, chairman and CEO of multi-concept restaurant group Quality Dining, Inc. – has spent decades making philanthropic contributions to organizations throughout the Midwest.
John Mastrojohn III, president and CEO of CHC, is quite pleased to see Fitzpatrick joining the prestigious lineup of Helping Hands Award recipients.
"We're delighted to be honoring Dan Fitzpatrick tonight," Mastrojohn said. "He is a committed community leader and has contributed significantly throughout the region. As with others before, this event shines a light on individuals like Dan and highlights the intersection between their personal mission and our mission to serve the community."
With Fitzpatrick at the helm, Quality Dining has grown to manage over 157 locations, including Burger King, Slim Chickens, and beloved regional restaurants Papa Vino’s Italian Kitchen and Uptown Kitchen. Fitzpatrick encourages his employees to "love the guests and help each other," and this spirit of charity can be seen in both his professional as well as his philanthropic career.
In 1982, Fitzpatrick founded You Can Lend a Hand, a program that has raised over $12 million for Catholic schools throughout Northern Indiana and Southwest Michigan. Besides serving as a Holy Cross College trustee and lead director of 1st Source Corporation, Fitzpatrick has been closely involved with organizations throughout the community, including the Morris Performing Arts Center, the LOGAN Center, the Madison Center and Hospital, and the St Joseph Regional Medical Center.
During his acceptance speech, Fitzpatrick expressed his appreciation for receiving the award and praised the great work that CHC does on a daily basis. He described how CHC provided his older brother with top-tier care during his final months. Fitzpatrick stressed that it takes a special person to offer people the comfort and support that CHC caregivers do.
Dr. Karissa Misner, medical director of CHC, appreciates the opportunities to both celebrate and educate that the Helping Hands Awards Dinner offers.
"Events like this are good opportunities to spread the word about hospice care," Dr. Misner said. "Some people have negative misconceptions about hospice and palliative care. We're here to spread the word about the good things that we do for patients who are at the end of life or have advanced serious illnesses. Whether they have several years or two months left to live, we're here to help them. We have made a huge impact in the community by giving our patients quality of life at the end of life and a dying process that is filled with comfort, dignity, and respect for their wishes."
This is the second year that the Helping Hands Awards Dinner has featured a Paddle Up fundraiser. Charity Auctioneer J.J. Raterink called out donation amounts and attendees would lift their paddles to indicate which amounts they would like to contribute. This year’s Paddle Up raised a total of $75,000, all of which will support Kaleidoscope, CHC’s new community-based palliative care program. Kaleidoscope takes a holistic approach to care, providing patients who have severe or chronic illnesses with the combined services of nurse practitioners, nurses, doctors, community health professionals, and even chaplains.
Ellie Boocher, a Kaleidoscope patient, was featured in a promotional video shown at the event. Boocher’s doctor, who is treating her for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, recommended the program to her about five months ago. She has been feeling happier and healthier ever since.
"Everything about Kaleidoscope is just perfect," Boocher said. "I love when my girls – that's what I call my caregivers – come to visit me every month. I look forward to it. They're great people and everybody is so organized. I wish everybody could be in a program like this. I think more doctors need to recommend it, because Kaleidoscope is the future. This event offers an opportunity for people from different walks of life, like doctors, nurses, and patients, to connect with one another. You have to connect.”
For more information on Center for Hospice Care’s services and upcoming events, please visit cfhcare.org.
