Dr. Kim Thomas knows that losing weight during the holidays is a big challenge, especially in October when Halloween candy seems to beckon from every corner. However, helping San Diegans lose weight is literally Dr. Kim’s job, so she wasn’t about to let the holidays keep her clients from being healthy!

Dr. Kim is the founder of Proactive Medical Weight Management, a business with offices in San Diego and Murrieta that provides doctor-supported assistance for anyone seeking to shed pounds and improve their quality of life. Each month, Dr. Kim tries to encourage her patients with fun promotions, contests, drawings, and more. This October, she tried something entirely new—translating each patient’s success into a charitable donation. For the “Tip the Scales Against Breast Cancer” promotion, Dr. Kim donated one dollar for every pound her patients lost during the month.

Where to Donate

When deciding which charity to support, Dr. Kim knew she wanted to choose a charity in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. “I wanted to find a charity that helped people locally and that made our donation really count,” Dr. Kim told us. After searching for charities with low administrative costs, Dr. Kim chose to donate the collection from her San Diego office to Shades of Pink Foundation California.

“It was local and personal, and I knew my donation was going to make a difference,” Dr. Kim said.

This was the first time Dr. Kim had ever connected her patients’ outcomes with a charitable donation. In the past, she’d given patients discounts on injections, like Vitamin B12, or entered them into raffles when they showed progress on their weight loss goals. Would her patients care about the donation? Would it help them stay on track during October?

Almost 2,000 Pounds Lost

The answer was an overwhelming yes! By the end of the month, Dr. Kim was able to write a check for over $800 to SOPFCA. “My patients felt great about the promotion,” Dr. Kim remembers. “Not only was it exciting for them to step on the scale and see that they’d lost weight, but all that hard work helped generate money for a good cause. It was an extra sweet reward.”
The promotion also gave Dr. Kim and her staff a personal boost. Between her two offices, Dr. Kim’s patients lost almost 2,000 pounds. “We helped our patients lose almost a ton of weight across both locations in a single month,” Dr. Kim explained. “It made us all feel really good around the office.”

Why This Donation Meant So Much

For Dr. Kim, the decision to support SOPFCA was also a personal one. She lost her husband to cancer and her boyfriend lost his wife to breast cancer. “When my husband was first diagnosed, it felt like my life was coming apart at the seams,” Dr. Kim admits. “I felt like I had no control over anything and all I could do was to be in the moment with my husband every step of the way.”

Dr. Kim explains that she and her husband were fortunate to have insurance, a strong network of family and friends, and accommodating employers so she didn’t have to worry about the financial impact of her husband’s diagnosis as much as many others in a similar situation. “SOPFCA helps women who were not as blessed as us,” she says, “and that’s why this promotion was so meaningful.”

Proactive Medical Weight Management donates to a number of charities throughout the year. Asked if she would be repeating the Tip the Scales Against Breast Cancer promotion next year, Dr. Kim replied that she is definitely considering it.

When she isn’t helping fellow San Diegans become slimmer and healthier, Dr. Kim loves hiking with her boyfriend and spending time with their four children. Her goal is to one day hike the entire Pacific Crest Trail.

Here at Shades of Pink Foundation California, we want to thank Dr. Kim for her innovative fundraiser and the donation she provided. Her story shows us that businesses across San Diego can find fun and personalized ways to fundraise for the causes they believe in.

If you are looking to shed some pounds and want the guidance of a fully credentialed doctor who can offer a variety of therapeutic options, learn more about Proactive Medical Weight Management in San Diego.