Gratitude for Life-Saving Care

The Prisma Health-Upstate Foundation received a $500,000 commitment from Dorothy and Steve Dowe to establish the Dowe Family Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) Fund and support the William W. Kellett III, MD Scholarship Endowment at the USC School of Medicine Greenville. The gift will accelerate the growth of Prisma Health’s nationally recognized ECMO program, supporting new technology, expanded resources and direct assistance for patients and families, as well as supporting medical students by helping ease their financial burdens during school.

With the Dowe Family’s generosity, Prisma Health will add three new ECMO pumps — a $400,000 investment that will nearly double the program’s capacity — significantly increasing access to care. In addition, the fund will provide financial support to families of patients currently receiving ECMO treatment to help temporarily offset
living expenses.

“I’ve got such gratitude for the people who saved my life,” said Steve Dowe, former ECMO patient. “The doctors and this huge cast of people who propped me up for so long until I could stand up. I’m grateful to them.” The remaining $100,000 of the donation will support the William W. Kellett III, MD Scholarship Endowment for graduates of Wofford College at the USC School of Medicine Greenville. The endowment is named in memory of Bill Kellett, MD, husband of Lydia Kellett, who is a close friend of the Dowe family.

The above is an excerpt from the 2025 Impact Report.