PATIENT STORIES Building a Legacy Through Entrepreneurial Spirit

Rosalie Bulach put her heart and soul into building her successful database marketing business, Name-Finders Lists, Inc., employing 45 people at its peak. She considered those 45 families to be members of her own family, responsible for their well-being as if they were her own children.

I can’t give enough praise to Sutter.

Self-reliance and entrepreneurial spirit have defined Rosalie’s entire life and career, from her early work in New York for Value Line investment Survey, Inc., to starting her own business in consulting and ultimately, Name-Finders. She was widowed in 1974, tragically losing her husband Joe to cancer, but Rosalie’s resilience and risk-taking became her calling card.

“Throughout my career, I told my employees to always put the client first, give them $1.30 worth of advice for every dollar they spend so they always feel like we provided value,” says Rosalie.

During the wild days of the dot.com bubble, she saved when others “spent like drunken sailors” expecting the eventual crash. That savvy kept Rosalie in business for 34 years until she closed the doors in 2014.

“Financial advisers told me to cut back on the amount of money I give away when I started to think about retiring, but that’s not my style,” notes Rosalie.

Treating Healthcare Like Family and Giving Back

Since moving to California, Rosalie has had her share of healthcare incidents. She had always been delighted by her experiences at Sutter facilities including California Pacific Medical Center and Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital. It wasn’t until being referred to a ‘best-in-class’ specialist outside of Sutter that she realized how wonderful her care had been in the Sutter system.

“I can’t give enough praise to Sutter, it is the kind of organization I am proud to support,” says Rosalie. “Working hard for every dollar I earned, I look for organizations that value my gift — where I can trust them to make a difference. Not only are the physicians high-quality, but the staff make me feel like I’m family — that’s important because being single, you don’t want to feel alone.”

Through all of the places Rosalie has lived and worked, she has been deeply dedicated to building a sense of community and giving back. She finds that same mission exists at Sutter. So in her retirement, she not only continues to volunteer as a board member at Sutter Santa Rosa but she is proud to leave a legacy gift to the hospital.

“We are fortunate to have volunteers and donors like Rosalie who trust our work and join us in our mission to improve the health of everyone in our community — not simply with annual gifts, but through generously including us in her estate plan,” says Penny Cleary, director of development, North Bay.

“The worst emergency a family can face is a medical emergency,” concludes Rosalie. “Why not support the medical professionals who keep us alive and protect our family and our community with an estate gift?”