Dominican University of California inaugural recipient of first scholarship focused on home-based care
LARKSPUR, CA, August 21, 2025 – By the Bay Health, the largest independent nonprofit hospice, palliative care, and home health provider in Northern California, today announced a new scholarship in memoriam of Marin County healthcare advocate and visionary Pat Kendall. The By the Bay Health Pat Kendall Memorial Nursing Scholarship provides financial assistance to Bachelor of Science Nursing students who demonstrate financial need and have an interest in pursuing a career in home-based care in the Bay Area. The scholarship is the first of its kind dedicated to home-based nursing.
Through the generosity of By the Bay Health donors, a $50,000 scholarship will be awarded this year to two Dominican University of California students in the B.S. Nursing program enrolled in the 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 academic years. Each scholarship awardee will receive $12,500 per year for the 3rd and 4th years of the B.S. in Nursing program and an exclusive recruitment opportunity with By the Bay Health in the Spring semester of their fourth year.
“We are honored to establish this exciting new nursing scholarship in Pat Kendall’s name,” said Skelly Wingard, CEO of By the Bay Health. “Pat devoted her entire 50-year career to advancing health, home-based care, and community well-being in Marin County. She was a staunch advocate for the most vulnerable in our community, championing home-based services to ensure that all patients could receive equitable, high-quality, and compassionate care in the comfort of their homes.”
The new scholarship comes at a critical time when nursing shortages are at an all-time high. According to a recent Mercer report on the future of the U.S. healthcare industry, a national shortage of over 100,000 healthcare professionals is projected in less than
three years, with severe shortages in behavioral health and nursing. In California, the nursing shortage is projected to reach a 26% deficit by 2036 (HRSA Nurse Workforce Projections) – an alarming trend in Marin County as one of the regions with the oldest populations in the country.
“I can think of no better way to honor and celebrate Pat Kendall’s remarkable 50 years of service—including more than three decades as Medical Group Administrator at Kaiser Permanente San Rafael—than through a legacy that reflects who she was,” said Armika Berkley, Chief Administrative Officer at Kaiser Permanente. “Pat devoted her life to advancing care, especially through her passion for home-based services. She brought wisdom, courage, and heart to every role she held. Ensuring her impact lives on by supporting the education of future nurses is not only fitting, it is a beautiful tribute to the difference she made in countless lives.”
The By the Bay Health Pat Kendall Memorial Nursing Scholarship is part of a comprehensive initiative, Pathways to Care Careers (PCC), launched by the nonprofit organization earlier this year in honor of its 50th anniversary. Building on By the Bay Health’s legacy of leadership and community engagement, the PCC program was created to ensure a thriving, sustainable, and fulfilled workforce, committed to providing every individual with compassionate, high-quality, home-based care through collaborative community-based partnerships across the Bay Area.
Key initiatives include the launch of a new Career Technical Education (CTE) course on healthcare careers at San Marin High School in partnership with the Marin County Office of Education and Novato Unified School District, paid high school summer internships at By the Bay Health in collaboration with nonprofit 10,000 Degrees, a Certified Nursing Assistant program at the College of Marin in partnership with the Canal Alliance, and the new nursing scholarship at Dominican University. Planned program elements go beyond education to include affordable housing, technology, and support resources to ensure that nursing graduates can stay in the County to support their local communities.
To donate to the By the Bay Health Pat Kendall Memorial Scholarship, visit https://bythebayhealth.org/pat-kendall-memorial-nursing-scholarship/
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About By the Bay Health
By the Bay Health, an independent nonprofit affiliate of UCSF Health, is a progressive and innovative leader delivering home-based hospice, skilled home health care, palliative care, grief support, and pediatric care in all nine counties of the San Francisco Bay Area. In January 2024, By the Bay Health merged with Mission Hospice & Home Care and Hope Hospice to extend services into the South Bay and East Bay, becoming the largest independent nonprofit hospice organization in Northern California. For more information visit www.bythebayhealth.org
Media Contacts
Caroline Kawashima
By the Bay Health
ckawashima@bythebayhealth.org
