SAN DIEGO, July 12 – Thanks to an extraordinary outpouring of giving from every corner of San Diego, Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego announced today that “The Campaign for Rady Children’s,” an ambitious effort to raise $220 million to care for the sick and injured children of San Diego by December 2012, has reached its goal six months early, with a total of $221,308,322 contributed so far. The estimated number of gifts (donations) received during the campaign – 4.9 million – dramatically illustrates the wide range of support from a huge cross section of San Diego.
Some highlights of the Campaign to date:
• 4.9 million gifts received
• 5,012 gifts from corporations and businesses
• 4,140 community groups participated in fundraising
• 250,000 volunteers donated time to fundraise for The Campaign
• 25 gifts to The Campaign of $1 million or more
Some especially generous gifts were integral to the Campaign’s success, such as:
• $60 million from the Rady family
• $50 million from an anonymous donor
• Gifts of $10 million from the Peckham family to create the Peckham Center for Cancer & Blood Disorders
• Gifts of $10 million from the Warren family to create the Warren Family Surgical Center
• $6 million from the Viterbi family to create the Viterbi Family Outpatient Clinic for Cancer & Blood Disorders
• $6 million from Rady Children’s Auxiliary to fund a variety of programs and to create the Auxiliary Garden at the entrance to the Acute Care Pavilion
Rady Children’s began the Campaign in 2007 when it urgently needed to raise funds to construct the Acute Care Pavilion, a 279,000 square foot facility that is now home to the Peckham Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders, the Warren Family Surgical Center, the Viterbi Outpatient Clinic, The Carlson Family Neonatal Intensive Care Unit East and Carley’s Magical Gardens. The Acute Care Pavilion opened its doors on October 10, 2010.
In September 2011, Rady Children’s launched a new phase of The Campaign for Rady Children’s, focused on three core components – Care, Technology and Discovery. The Hospital asked San Diego to help it provide the most comprehensive care and advanced technology, and discover cures to childhood diseases.
Thanks to generous donors, Rady Children’s has:
• Constructed the $260 million Acute Care Pavilion.
• Funded Patient Care including the Child Life program which helps patients and their families understand the Hospital experience.
• Purchased Technology such as a kid-friendly MRI (the first MRI ever installed on the Rady Children’s campus) that allows children to watch a movie or listen to music while being scanned.
• Expanded Discovery by funding innovative research such as Dr. John Crawford’s research into the causes of pediatric brain tumors and development of targeted treatments.
“The success of The Campaign for Rady Children’s is a tribute San Diego’s enduring commitment to the health and well-being of children,” said Kathleen Sellick, President and CEO of Rady Children’s. “Thanks to your generosity, we constructed the Acute Care Pavilion, an amazing facility that that blends high-technology with a healing environment. We purchased vital technology, strengthened patient care, and funded important research. As we celebrate this accomplishment, we are inspired to reach higher and to do more for the children of our community.”
“It’s clear that San Diego not only takes great pride in Rady Children’s, the community trusts us to make the highest and best use of its philanthropic support,” said William B. Sailer, Esq., Chair of Rady Children’s Hospital Foundation Board of Trustees. “Achieving this $220 million goal allows Rady Children’s to bring even more important research from the laboratory to the bedside, and has made The Campaign for Rady Children’s the second largest completed campaign in the history of San Diego.”
“It’s inspiring to know that so many San Diegans have joined me in supporting the important mission of Rady Children’s,” said Ernest Rady, Honorary Chair of Rady Children’s Board of Trustees and a board member for more than 14 years. “I can’t imagine anything more rewarding than knowing you are helping a child in need.”
“From jars of change collected at lemonade stands to multi-million dollar gifts, I’ve had the privilege to witness first-hand San Diego’s extraordinary generosity,” said David B. Gillig, FAHP, Senior Vice President and Executive Director of Rady Children’s Hospital Foundation. “It’s clear San Diego takes great pride in supporting Rady Children’s, and for that we are eternally grateful.”
“By supporting The Campaign for Rady Children’s, San Diego has made an important investment in its future,” said David F. Hale, Chair of the Board of Trustees at Rady Children’s. “The Campaign’s success will allow Rady Children’s to further enhance its ability to fulfill its mission: to restore, sustain and enhance the health and developmental potential of children.”
With so many advances that have come to reality thanks to The Campaign, the Hospital’s Foundation Board has invited the community to reach a stretch goal: raise an additional $5 million by December 30, 2012. The additional funds will help Rady Children’s speed efforts to one day sequence the DNA of every child seen at the hospital, to conduct life-saving clinical trials, and to establish a tissue bank that will allow doctors to determine the best diagnosis and treatment for disease and injury.
“I’m confident San Diego will once again demonstrate its compassion for children and rally to support our new goal,” said William Sailer. “During this Campaign we made a covenant with our community to provide the very best in Patient Care, Technology, and Discovery. We intend to fulfill this commitment to the children in our care at the highest level possible.”