Thanks to the generosity of one Colorado Springs man, Memorial Health System recently became the first health care facility in Colorado Springs to offer digital mammography, a new way of screening that is more effective in detecting breast cancer.

The donor, Gayle Beshears matched dollar for dollar what was raised by the Memorial Health Foundation. He gave more than 120,000 dollars. Wednesday night the center was renamed in honor of Beshears late wife, Mary Lou, a breast cancer survivor.

"She is just smiling like you wouldn't believe right now. After she passed away I needed something to do, the days got awfully long," Gayle said.

So he decided to put his energy towards helping fight breast cancer, a disease his late wife battled and survived.

"Just wanted to save lives," Gayle said.

So he helped Memorial Health System purchase six digital mammography machines.

"It's better than a film screen mammogram in every way," said Chris Bartlett, Medical Director of the Breast Care Center.

Bartlett says the new digital machines are more detailed, more accurate. Bottom line, they are better tools for early detection.

"Finding a cancer in an early stage, it may be curable, your chances of survival are much better," said Bartlett.

As Gayle looks at his wife's picture that will hang in the lobby of what is now the Mary Lou Beshears Breast Care Center; he's brought to tears.

"No doubt we are going to save a lot of ladies lives, that's what it's all about, saving lives," Gayle said.

The breast care center started using the digital mammography machines here about three months ago.