ChristianaCare Honors Two Difference-Makers

ChristianaCare’s Council of Advisors recently recognized longtime partners in serving our community with love and excellence with awards for their commitment to the health of our neighbors.

Penny Saridakis: Distinguished service

Penny Saridakis, immediate past chair of the ChristianaCare Council of Advisors, received the 2023 Charles J. Harrington Award for Distinguished Service to ChristianaCare.

Saridakis serves in volunteer leadership roles and as a dedicated philanthropist and mentor. She is a devoted stakeholder at ChristianaCare, including being a Trustee and Advisor for several years. Additionally, she served on the Nominating Committee and the Ad Hoc Trustee Governance Committee.

From 2009-14 she was lead co-chair of the Friends of the Helen F. Graham Cancer Center & Research Institute. She is co-founder/co-chair of the Young Friends of ChristianaCare, a group for high school students that focuses on leadership, learning and philanthropy.

Committed to enhancing the quality of life in Delaware, Saridakis is chair of the Board of Directors for Easterseals Delaware & Maryland’s Eastern Shore. She is immediate past chair of the Board of Directors of Leadership Delaware and serves on its Advisory Board. She has championed other regional organizations promoting health care, education and the arts.

“Penny embodies the devotion to service and the vision of a true leader,” said Julie Topkis Nason, chair of the Council of Advisors, in presenting the award. “She gives selflessly of her talent and treasure.”

The Harrington Award was first presented in 1996 to its namesake, the late director emeritus of the ChristianaCare Board of Directors and former ChristianaCare trustee who was a strong proponent of service and the importance of philanthropy.

Stacey Bacchieri: Action and impact

Philanthropist Stacey Bacchieri, a member of ChristianaCare’s Council of Advisors, received the Carroll M. Carpenter Impact Award. This award recognizes a member of the Council of Advisors who emulates leadership, selflessness, service, action and impact.

“Stacey brings leadership, talent and incredible generosity to improving access to cancer care and outcomes for citizens of our community and our neighbors,” said Tynetta Brown, vice chair of the Council of Advisors, in presenting the award. “Her commitment to fighting cancer continues with humility, grace and passion.”

Bacchieri has committed generous philanthropic support to the Helen F. Graham Cancer Center & Research Institute, expanding educational programs, innovative initiatives, life-saving technology and groundbreaking research. This support has increased ChristianaCare’s capacity to deliver world-class cancer care, particularly in underserved populations.

Bacchieri and her late husband Gregg made the first major gift to ChristianaCare to advance head and neck cancer care and research. Bacchieri also supported purchase of a state-of-the-art radiography system to analyze breast cancer specimens and to expand a fellowship program to reduce disparities in breast and lung cancers, two of the most frequently diagnosed cancers in Delaware.

Dedicated to bettering Delaware and surrounding communities, Bacchieri serves on the Board of Trustees of Ursuline Academy and the Advisory Board of Serviam Girls Academy. She is on the board of Great Stuff, which benefits the Delaware Breast Cancer Coalition.

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