The Decker Legacy: Enduring Gift to Patient Education at Adirondack Health

The Decker Legacy: Enduring Gift to Patient Education at Adirondack Health

When Dr. Alfred Mills “Fritz” Decker made the decision to leave a gift to Adirondack Health in his estate plans, he was doing more than supporting a cause—he was creating a legacy that continues to change lives today. His generosity laid the foundation for the Decker Community Learning Center, a vital resource at Adirondack Medical Center that empowers patients across the region through trusted health education.

The Center, now led by Linda Savarie, RN, Certified Diabetes Educator, provides personalized support to patients managing chronic conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, and asthma, as well as guidance on nutrition, smoking cessation, and post-operative care. With support from a second legacy gift from his wife, Janet Parker Decker, the Center continues to serve patients from across the North Country—and even from Vermont.

“Legacy gifts like Dr. Decker’s are powerful,” says Dan Hill, Chief Operating Officer at Adirondack Health. “They create the kind of long-term, transformational impact that improves lives well into the future. The Decker Community Learning Center is a shining example of what one person’s generosity can do.”

A Life Dedicated to Healing

Born in Clarkson, New York in 1918, Alfred Decker graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Rochester in 1940 and earned his medical degree with Alpha Omega Alpha honors in 1943. After completing residencies and surgical fellowships in St. Louis, Montreal, and West Virginia, he served in the U.S. Army in Italy, where he rose to the rank of Captain and served as chief of surgery.

Drawn to the Adirondacks—a place where both his father and grandfather had sought healing—Dr. Decker returned to the region after the war. In 1957, he opened a private surgical practice in Saranac Lake, treating patients at three different hospitals and often logging over 24,000 miles annually to serve them. He remained a fixture in regional healthcare for decades, dedicating his life not only to medicine but to strengthening the institutions that supported it.

Dr. Decker chaired Adirondack Medical Center’s 75th Anniversary fundraising campaign, helping to raise $1.3 million to expand the hospital’s surgical facilities—culminating in the dedication of a new surgical wing in his name in 1989. Even after retiring in 1992, he continued to serve on the boards of the Trudeau Institute, St. Joseph’s Rehabilitation Center, and High Peaks Hospice.

Dr. Decker passed away in 2003, but the values he embodied—compassion, service, and commitment to community—live on through the Decker Community Learning Center.

From Legacy to Impact

The Center was established through his estate gift and strengthened by a subsequent legacy gift from Mrs. Janet Decker, his beloved wife and partner in philanthropy. In their honor, the Decker Learning Center Fund was created to ensure long-term sustainability—supporting everything from educational models and printed resources to diabetes training tools and patient visuals.

Many of the Center’s services are not covered by insurance, making donor support all the more vital. “We truly rely on the generosity of community members and the support of Adirondack Health to make this possible,” says Linda Savarie. “The impact we see is tremendous patients are more informed, more confident, and far better equipped to manage their health when they go home.”

In 2024, the Center served 238 patients, over half of whom were not part of Adirondack Health’s medical home. Services are available to anyone in the community—regardless of where they receive care—and appointments often include hands-on education with insulin pens, continuous glucose monitors, and customized nutritional plans.

“Their generosity has touched hundreds of lives—each one with a story, a family, and a future made brighter because someone cared enough to leave a lasting gift,” Linda reflects.

The Decker Legacy Lives On

The Decker Community Learning Center is more than a physical space. It is the embodiment of a life devoted to healing and a future shaped by thoughtful generosity.

As Adirondack Health continues to grow and serve new generations, the Decker family’s legacy reminds us of the enduring power of planned giving—and the extraordinary difference one life, and one gift, can make.

To support the Decker Learning Center Fund or learn more about legacy giving, contact the Adirondack Health Foundation at (518) 897-2348, jbalog@adirondackhealth.org visit adirondackhealthfoundation.org/planned-giving.