Recruiting the Best

Generous support from Richard & Joan Stark provides a competitive edge for attracting providers.

Richard and Joan Stark are a generous pair.

They love supporting causes and organizations that are meaningful to them. They do not necessarily love the attention that can accompany their philanthropic acts, though. They are as humble as they are generous.

A comment Richard made after receiving an honor from Iowa State sums up his and Joan’s approach to life and philanthropy: “It’s the doing and not the recognition that is exciting in one’s life. I believe that giving is spiritual in that it is uplifting. Giving is the fun part—you are helping a cause that you think is important.”

Now in their 70s, the Starks are starting to think that it might be okay to enjoy the spotlight a little bit more. The motivation is not their own gratification. The hope, rather, is to inspire others to perform similar acts of gratitude.

This is the motivation behind a gift the Starks have made to Mary Greeley to establish the Stark Provider Excellence Fund, which will help the hospital recruit physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants with skills and specialties necessary to continue to provide outstanding care to patients at Mary Greeley.

“The Starks have made one of the most significant gifts Mary Greeley has ever received,” said Brian Dieter, president and CEO of Mary Greeley. “We have a vision to be the best hospital for receiving care and working, and the Starks’ generosity will help us achieve this vision. Its impact, and, most importantly, the benefits it will provide to our patients, will be felt for a long time.”

The Starks hope others will follow their example and extend that impact by making contributions to the fund.

“We have strong feelings about Mary Greeley and we want to thank those who have provided both care and kindness,” said Richard. “Mary Greeley and McFarland Clinic have done an extraordinary job. Ames being a college town makes it a good draw, of course, but you still need to keep recruiting outstanding talent all the time.”

Relationships

This is not the first time the Starks have supported Mary Greeley. They contributed to the Extraordinary Visions Campaign and the Birthways/Pediatrics capital project, and they recently made a gift to establish the Mary Greeley Compassion Fund in honor of Dr. Dan Fulton, the McFarland Clinic infection prevention specialist who was at the forefront of the local response to COVID-19.

Provider recruitment is a complex process. The physician recruitment process, for example, can start with candidates who are still completing their training. A successful hire can often mean waiting a year or more before the person actually starts. Also, with many specialties experiencing a shortage of providers, competition for qualified candidates can be intense and expensive. Their most recent gift to Mary Greeley “is a strategic investment in the future of the hospital and the high-quality healthcare we provide to residents of central Iowa,” said Dieter. “In a real sense it echoes Captain Wallace Greeley’s gift of the hospital to the community. At the dedication in 1916, he talked about his hope that Mary Greeley would be here to help people well into the future. The Starks’ gift is similarly focused on the future and the welfare of people.”

The Starks warmly talk about the relationships they’ve had with many McFarland Clinic physicians who have practiced at Mary Greeley, including Dr. Leo Milleman, urologist; the late Dr. Robert Gitchell, an orthopedic surgeon; and Dr. Jon Fleming, a gastroenterologist.

The Starks met Fleming 35 years ago, when he was at Mayo Clinic during his gastroenterology fellowship and was called in to consult on a case involving a family member.

Fleming described his friends as “very down-to-earth native Iowans with that Iowa work ethic. They are dedicated to their causes, one of which is healthcare.”

The Stark Provider Excellence Fund is going to help strengthen healthcare in central Iowa, he said.

“Recruitment in healthcare is extremely competitive. Resident and fellowship physicians are graduating with a range of good opportunities,” said Fleming. “I see this fund as a wonderful way to give us a competitive edge as we continue to recruit outstanding providers.”

Business Success

The Starks have found success in farming and finance. They have several farms, and Richard still runs Iowa Commodities, Ltd., which he started in 1979. He has been chairman of First American Bank, a multibank holding company based in Fort Dodge, since 1986. He also has been a member of the Chicago Board of Trade for more than 50 years and served as its director and chairman of public relations from 1982 to 1985.

Organizations the Starks have supported over the years include Mayo Clinic, Youth and Shelter Services, St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Ames, and Iowa State University. Richard is a 1971 graduate of Iowa State, and three of their five daughters have degrees from the university. (One of their daughters, Jennifer Stark Mortimer, has also served on Mary Greeley’s Foundation Board.)

In 2021, ISU opened the Stark Performance Center, a state-of-the-art facility for student-athletes. This year, Joan received an honorary degree from Iowa State.

“It really is a special honor to even have been considered for it,” she said.

Richard and Joan have been married for 52 years, and he credits her with running the family (and cutting their hair, as she’s a trained cosmetologist) while he has pursued business opportunities.

“Without her, I couldn’t accomplish anything,” he said.