Philanthropist Jim Pattison donates $5 million toward new south Niagara hospital

Well-known philanthropist and business mogul Jim Pattison has pledged $5 million to a campaign supporting the future Niagara Falls hospital.

Niagara Health Foundation announced Thursday in a press release that Pattison, whose company owns attractions in Niagara Falls, made the pledge to the It’s Our Future fundraising effort to benefit the hospital to be built at Montrose and Biggar roads.

In honour of the donation, the hospital’s emergency department will be named the Jim Pattison Emergency Department.

“We are grateful for the opportunity to be part of the Niagara south hospital project and appreciate the efforts of the entire team as they support the needs of so many people in the community,” said Pattison in the release.

Pattison has a lengthy history of dedication to the community and public service. He is an Officer of the Order of Canada and The Jim Pattison Group is among Canada’s most prolific corporate donors.

Pattison credits his parents for teaching him the importance of giving back at a young age.

Niagara Falls is home to two of The Jim Pattison Group’s divisions, including Great Wolf Lodge and Ripley’s Believe It or Not!

“We are deeply grateful to Mr. Pattison for his exceptional generosity and his commitment to our community’s healthcare,” said Andrea Scott, president and chief executive officer of Niagara Health Foundation.

“The naming of the new hospital’s emergency department after Mr. Pattison is a testament to his dedication of improving the lives of others and will remind everyone who enters its doors that they are supported and cared for by their community in their time of need.”

The new 10-storey, 111,485-square-metre hospital will have 469 beds and eight operating suites. It will feature centres of excellence in complex care, wellness in aging and stroke, as well as a full-service emergency department and intensive-care unit, surgical care, dialysis, diagnostics and more.

Construction is expected to start this fall and take about four years to complete.

“The emergency department at new south Niagara hospital will grow our capacity to see more patients and we are extremely grateful for the generosity Jim Pattison has shown in his support of healthcare in our region once again,” said Lynn Guerriero, president and CEO of Niagara Health.

Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati and Harry Oakes, co-chairs of the It’s Our Future campaign, said Pattinson’s donation will allow the team to “continue the momentum we need to raise the money that will raise the bar at this hospital.”

“We are well on our way and support like Jim Pattison’s makes all the difference,” they said in a joint statement.

The foundation said it will continue to announce and celebrate campaign donors over the next few months and is thankful of the donors.

To date, the foundation has secured pledges of more than $50 million in support towards the local share of the hospital project.

To learn more about the campaign and the hospital project, visit ItsOurFuture.com.

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