Pella Regional Health Center and Knoxville Hospital & Clinics Recognize Van der Lely Foundation for their Support of $114,000 (€100,000) to the Bridging the Gap Campaign

November 03, 2026

by Press Release

The Van der Lely Foundation recently contributed $114,000 to the Bridging the Gap Campaign to help fund the Pella Knoxville Cancer Center. They are pictured alongside representatives from Knoxville Hospital & Clinics and Pella Regional Health Center. Pictured in the photo representing Lely is Martijn Boelens, Chairman of the Van der Lely Foundation, along with Lely International board members and staff: Sue Shultz, Tiffany Tremmel, Mark Core, Cauis Ort, Gijs Scholman, and Scott Van Grouw. Pictured in the photo representing the Bridging the Gap Campaign are Bob Kroese, CEO of Pella Regional Health Center; Mike Montgomery, Campaign Co-Chair; Jenny Hesseltine, Foundation Manager; Dave Johnson, Campaign Co-Chair; Mark Wall, CFO of Pella Regional Health Center; Jody Van Veen, CNO of Pella Regional Health Center and Mark Van Roekel, Pella Regional Health Center Foundation Board President.

Pella Regional Health Center Foundation receives a one-time contribution of $114,000 (€100,000) from the Van der Lely Foundation for the Bridging the Gap Campaign. The donation will support the development of radiation oncology services at Pella Regional Health Center in Pella, Iowa.

Pella Regional Health Center and Knoxville Hospital & Clinics are jointly developing the South Central Iowa Radiation Center. Located on the campus of Pella Regional Health Center, the new 7,800-square-foot facility will include a linear accelerator for radiation treatment and a PET/CT scanner. The center is expected to open in 2027 and will serve patients across six counties in south-central Iowa.

“Lely USA has been a loyal contributor to local healthcare needs for many years,” said Jenny Hesseltine, Foundation Manager, Pella Regional Health Center. “We have so appreciated their local partnership and are now very grateful for the significant support of the Van der Lely Foundation for this momentous project.”

Bringing radiation treatment closer to home
Neither hospital currently offers radiation oncology services. Patients who need radiation treatment must therefore travel to other locations, including Des Moines. For a six-and-a-half-week course of treatment, a patient may travel around 2,925 miles and spend 65 hours on the road, according to Pella Regional Health Center, making the patient burden high. The motivation to change that for the sake of patients and their families is the driving force behind this $14.3 million facility. Funding for the project is to be raised through the Bridging the Gap Campaign, led by the hospital foundations of Pella Regional and Knoxville Hospital.

“During my visit to Pella, I had the opportunity to meet the people working to make this new centre a reality. Their commitment to improving healthcare in the region really stood out to me. What makes this project particularly valuable is that it addresses a very practical need, with a direct impact on the lives of patients and their families. We are pleased to help make that possible,” says Martijn Boelens, Chairman of the Van der Lely Foundation.

“We are incredibly grateful to the Van der Lely Foundation for their generous support of the Bridging the Gap campaign,” said Kevin Kincaid, CEO, Knoxville Hospital & Clinics. “This project is about more than building a new facility—it’s about bringing life-changing cancer care closer to home for patients and families throughout south central Iowa. The investment of Van der Lely Foundation demonstrates their commitment to the health and well-being of our communities and will make a lasting difference in the lives of those facing a cancer diagnosis. We sincerely appreciate their partnership in helping make this vision a reality.”

The Van der Lely Foundation's contribution is specifically designated for the Hot Lab at Pella Regional Health Center, as part of the development of the new radiation treatment facility.