In the News

Valley Baptist-Harlingen's CEO Kissed the Pig! 

It's only his first year as CEO of Valley Baptist Medical Center-Harlingen but already Shane Spees is contributing to the wellbeing of others in our community.  Last winter, Mr. Spees along with help of several key leaders at our hospital formed a team to fight Diabetes for The American Diabetes Association’s “Kiss a Pig” campaign.  From selling apples to teeing off for a good cause, it paid off as Mr. Spees won the top spot among 12 community leaders raising money for this year's event. 

The “Kiss a Pig” campaign is not your typical fundraiser, it’s an event to raise awareness and funds to support research on Diabetes. For several year now, Valley Baptist Health System has been the title sponsor of this event.

Diabetes is a condition in which the body does not produce or properly use insulin, a hormone that is needed to convert sugar, starches and other food into energy needed for daily life. Many people with diabetes must inject daily insulin shots in order to sustain life. Complications from diabetes include heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, blindness, nerve damage and severe infections leading to foot and leg amputations. People with Diabetes hold pigs in high esteem because they provided insulin before synthetic sources were available and are therefore symbolic heroes in the fight against the disease.

The “Kiss a Pig” campaign wrapped up in April with Harlingen candidates raising more than $35,000.  Valleywide, community leaders like Mr. Spees managed to raise a total of $120,000.00 for the non-profit organization which helps millions of children and adults with Diabetes.  Together we assisted in the mission of the ADA; to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by Diabetes.

On behalf of the members of the Harlingen ADA board, we want to thank Mr. Spees and all our candidates and sponsors for taking time to help with this year's successful campaign.