Jim Pattison donates $50 million to Childrens Hospital Foundation of Saskatchewan

May 31, 2017, 7:44 am

A new day dawned in maternal and pediatric healthcare today with the announcement of the largest one-time donation in Saskatchewan history to a charitable organization.

Businessman and philanthropist Jim Pattison, originally from Luseland, Saskatchewan, announced a donation of $50 million to the Children’s Hospital Foundation of Saskatchewan.

The historic gift will help support world-class pediatric and maternal research and equipment at the new Children’s Hospital of Saskatchewan.

In honour of the unprecedented gift, the new provincial hospital will be renamed Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital.

Children’s Hospital Foundation of Saskatchewan is also changing its name accordingly, becoming Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation effective immediately.

Pattison is the owner of Pattison Ag, which owns the John Deere dealership in Moosomin and several other communities across Saskatchewan, as well as Pattison Outdoor Advertising, the Save-On Foods and Overwaitea grocery store chains and many other businesses.

“Jim Pattison’s remarkable gift will transform the future of maternal and pediatric health care on a scale this province has not seen before,” says Brynn Boback-Lane, President and CEO of Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation.

“We are tremendously grateful for this visionary gift, which will help us achieve long-term, stable funding to help create a world-class medical and research centre of excellence for Saskatchewan children, moms, and families right here at home.

“The people in this province are special. I’m glad I had an upbringing in Saskatchewan,” says entrepreneur and philanthropist Jim Pattison.

“Our objective is to take what we do and help others. Giving is a very important part of our lives, it doesn’t have to be money, it can be time. Show me the fabric of volunteers and I’ll show you a successful town, city, or province.”

“We want to express our deepest gratitude and appreciation for this extraordinary gift that will benefit the children and families of Saskatchewan for generations to come,” says Premier Brad Wall. “Mr. Pattison’s generous donation, together with the $235.5 million contribution from the province, and the impressive fundraising of the Children’s Hospital Foundation of Saskatchewan, will ensure that a world class children’s hospital will finally become a reality in Saskatchewan.”

The extraordinary gift includes ongoing, sustainable funding for the new provincial children’s hospital including pediatric and maternal-newborn equipment and fellowships, pediatric endowment research funds, in-kind advertising, and an endowment for Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation.

The bulk of the gift will provide a steady stream of revenue to help meet research and programming needs upon completion of the capital campaign when the doors open in late 2019.

Separate from today’s gift, the Foundation’s “We Can’t Wait” capital campaign has accumulated $54 million towards a campaign goal of a minimum of $75 million. Construction on Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital is on schedule and over 55% complete.