Susan Parks says when she retired, she decided to give back to the community she and her husband have lived in and loved for going on five decades. They settled on sharing their blessings with local organizations, saying they wanted to see the impact of their giving close to home. Among the organizations Susan and her husband, Stephen, decided to support was Inova. She joined Inova's Legacy Society by establishing a charitable gift annuity, saying she "wanted to make life better for others."

Soon, Susan was invited to attend luncheons and other special events for Inova donors, where she heard about specialized research, advances in technology, and "how Inova welcomes everyone." That's when she thought to herself, "This was a good move and I'm going to continue [giving to Inova]." And she did.

Unfortunately, in December 2025, 83-year-old Stephen experienced a frightening fall. When the paramedics arrived, they asked which hospital they should take him to, and thinking the treatment would be simple, Susan decided for convenience to go to the hospital nearest to their home.

Stephen was treated and released multiple times over the course of a few weeks, ultimately developing a hematoma that the family describes as "the size of a volleyball." Alarmed, Susan began to worry for her husband's long-term wellbeing and, recalling what she'd learned about the level of care at Inova, decided to take him there.

Staff at Inova Fairfax Hospital sprang into action, saying, "We're now dealing with life or limb." Stephen's wound was infected, and he needed intravenous antibiotics. "They took such good care of him," says Susan. Stephen was admitted to the hospital for seven days.

Susan says Stephen received "the right treatment," first at Inova Fairfax Hospital and then at Inova's Wound Healing Center - Loudoun, where Stephen went weekly for two months following his hospital stay. Stephen says that the specialized care he received at Inova took his knee "from disaster to success," adding "In a few weeks, I went from a mangled knee that might need plastic surgery to a knee that looked normal, like a knee that had merely had a replacement (which it had)! I am so grateful for the support from the hospital and the wound center."

The Parks family truly believes theirs is a success story. "It was a long recuperation, but they got him there," says Susan. "I wouldn't have a husband if not for Inova."

Susan and Stephen had supported Inova for years before needing specialized care themselves. After experiencing Inova's high standards of care firsthand, Susan gained an even deeper appreciation, saying, "I am so happy that we discovered Inova through giving. Until you have an intimate experience with a hospital, you don't really know or understand exactly what they do...now I know this is who I want to support."

Susan now regularly encourages others to give, as she has, through charitable gift annuities, which provide donors with fixed lifetime payments while ultimately supporting the causes they care about. "I know people are worried about whether their money will last until they die," she says. "And this is such a wonderful answer. You get money back and the donation goes to the organization."

Believing she's "outlived" her life expectancy, Susan says, "If not for hospitals and doctors, I don't know where we'd be...we are especially thankful for [Inova's] doctors and nurses. Hopefully we won't need them again very soon, but we know they will be there if we do.

To learn more about charitable gift annuities, or other ways to make a legacy gift in support of Inova, visit legacygivinginova.org.

What is a charitable gift annuity?

A charitable gift annuity is a gift made to Inova Health Foundation that can provide you with a secure source of fixed payments for life.

Charitable gift annuity video

Is a charitable gift annuity right for you?

The payout for charitable gift annuities will vary depending on the age of the donor. Please contact us to inquire about current payout rates or if you have any questions about charitable gift annuities.

Please note: The information above is representative of a typical donor and may or may not be an actual donor to our organization. Since your gift annuity benefits may be different, you may want to create a printable illustration of your benefits by using the calculator on this page.