By Kathy Chaffin
kchaffin@salisburypost.com
A barbecue chicken fundraiser and raffle is being held today to help with the medical expenses of Rowan County 911 Telecommunicator Robin Foster.
Foster, a shift supervisor at the 911 Center, was diagnosed with a rare bone marrow disease in late 2007. She underwent a bone marrow transplant in early January, but found out in March that it didn’t work, according to Grayson Gusa, one of four colleagues organizing the fundraiser.
She is scheduled for a second bone marrow transplant on Sept. 14 at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, Gusa said. “They’ve got a bone marrow donor from Germany.”
Gusa, an assistant shift supervisor for the 911 Center, organized the fundraiser with Allen Cress, lead shift supervisor for the center, and John Sharp and Heidi Hatley of Rowan County Emergency Medical Service. “We’ve been working for a couple of months getting it all together,” he said.
The fundraisers will be held at the Rowan County Rescue Squad at 1140 Julian Road from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Meals will sell for $8 and include barbecue chicken, baked beans, slaw and a drink. Raffle tickets will be on sale for $1 apiece or $10 for 12 tickets.
Gusa said the drawing will be held near the end of the fundraiser. Several items have been donated for the raffle, with the big item being a Remington shotgun.
Foster, who is 47, will not be at the fundraiser, he said, because her immune system is so low it’s dangerous for her to be out in public. Her husband, Michael, is expected to be there, however, along with other family members.
Gusa said he got to know Foster when he started working at the Rowan 911 Center about five years ago. “She’s very easy to get along with,” he said, “and knows her job very well. She’s well liked.”
When he and his colleagues realized she was in need because of the medical expenses, he said they decided to try to help.
Robin and Michael Foster live in Salisbury and have three children, one already out of college, one in college and one in high school.
For more information about the fundraiser, log onto www.robinfosterbenefit.org or contact Grayson Gusa at 704-202-8303 or grayson.gusa@ gmail.com.