So Many Ways to Give

Virginia Pearce Seawell remembers first hearing about Shepherd Center when she was in fifth grade. Her best friend’s mother, family friend Sally Nunnally, sustained a spinal cord injury in a car accident and became one of Shepherd’s first patients in the early days of the hospital. 

Seeing the level of care Sally Nunnally received at Shepherd Center made a big impact on Virginia’s parents, Gene and Libby Pearce. They became lifelong donors and volunteers at the hospital, with Gene serving two terms on the Foundation Board and Libby being an active member of Women Shaping Shepherd, a group of women who give annually and vote on patient programs to support through their donations. Libby also has a passion for helping people with disabilities get the assistive technology they need to thrive, and together, the couple has a fund supporting the hospital’s facility dog program. 

In addition to their own involvement, Gene and Libby have also shared their love of Shepherd with their three daughters: Elizabeth, Virginia, and Anne. 

After her college graduation, Elizabeth Pearce joined Shepherd Center’s Junior Committee, volunteering with Derby Day. As her career progressed, she shared her business and nonprofit expertise by serving on Shepherd’s Advisory Board, Foundation Board, and, most recently, the Long-Term Planning Committee. She was also a founding member of Women Shaping Shepherd. 

In addition to her board service, Elizabeth hopes to become a volunteer breakfast feeder after retirement. She’s also part of the J. Harold Shepherd Bridge Builders Society, a legacy giving society, ensuring her impact will continue even after she’s gone. “I love the idea that when I die — because we’re all going to — part of what I had in my life will be given to Shepherd Center,” Elizabeth says. “The possibilities are so great — if it’s a troubled time, maybe it fills a hole in the budget, or if it’s not, maybe [the hospital] could invest in something new that it couldn’t afford before.” 

Elizabeth’s sister, Virginia, also got involved with Shepherd through events like Derby Day, Summer in the City, and The Legendary Party. But after becoming an empty nester, she began volunteering at the hospital. Virginia currently volunteers as a gym runner in the Comprehensive Rehabilitation Unit (CRU), where she helps therapists with equipment and spends time with patients during their therapy sessions. 

“Working directly with the patients, working directly with the therapists, it is just unbelievably rewarding,” Virginia says. “It puts everything in perspective. I’ve gotten to know so many of the patients so well, and watching them graduate and get to move on is really special.” 

Anne Pearce Worrell’s involvement began yet another way, by becoming a staff member when she was 23 years old. Starting as a data entry assistant in the Foundation, she saw right away how Shepherd’s family-centered approach permeated throughout the hospital. 

“It always felt like we were one big family, all working toward the same goals. And I think that had a major impact on the patients and their families. They became a part of the Shepherd family, too,” she says. “That founding spirit of family hasn’t just survived, it’s thrived and multiplied, touching countless lives along the way.” 

One of her favorite parts of her role was seeing her team’s work pay off, literally — fundraising efforts from the Shepherd Foundation give patients access to programs like animal-assisted therapy, recreation therapy, family housing, and peer support — services not covered by insurance. In what she describes as a “full circle moment,” Anne and her husband, Andrew, chaired the 2023 Legendary Party. That year’s gala raised $4.4 million for Shepherd, with a record attendance of 645 guests. 

Each of Gene and Libby’s daughters has left their mark on Shepherd, and the next generation of the Pearce family is already getting involved — Virginia’s daughter, Mary Pearce Seawell, interned with the Foundation last fall and is currently a member of the Junior Committee. 

“Shepherd Center has been something that our family has shared, and that’s meant a lot,” Gene shared in a Spinal Column story from 2020. “It will continue to mean something because the gifts we give will live on and help patients and families in the future.” 

By Erin Kenney

This story first appeared in the special 50th anniversary issue of Spinal Column magazine.