News Releases
Hamilton, ON, February 23, 2011 – At a special event today, BMO Financial Group announced a new $300,000 donation to support patient care initiatives at St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton. This is BMO's largest ever gift to the Hamilton-area hospital.
BMO's gift supports St. Joseph's Healthcare's three main fundraising priorities: the renewal of its operating rooms at the Charlton Campus; the construction of a new mental and medical healthcare facility at the West 5th Campus; and the funding of clinical and scientific research.
“BMO has a long history of investing in the well being of the neighbourhoods, towns and regions we serve,” said Andrew Furgal, Vice President, South Central Ontario District, BMO Financial Group. “St. Joseph's cares for its patients and the community, and we're thrilled to support them. We're also delighted that the BMO name will be associated with the Hospital's newborn healthcare clinic which will make a real difference to the Hamilton community.”
“BMO was founded in 1817, while our Hospital's history of caring began in 1890. We've both been in this community for a very long time, and we share a common goal of ensuring everyone in the region St. Joe's serves has access to the very best care possible,” said Sera Filice-Armenio, Foundation President.
Dr. Kevin Smith, President and CEO, of St. Joseph's Health System, added, “The philanthropic support of corporations like BMO helps hospitals like ours to do the extraordinary for our patients. Our staff has long provided exceptional care to our patients. We look forward to the enhancements to our patient care facilities and programs that this gift, and others like it, will enable us to make.”
The event concluded with Ms. Filice-Armenio announcing that, in recognition of the $300,000 gift, the Hospital's Breastfeeding and Newborn Assessment (BANA) Clinic would now be named the BMO Financial Group BANA Clinic. The clinic provides breastfeeding support, care and assistance to new mothers and their infants during the first six weeks after birth.
About BMO
Established in 1817 and based in Canada, BMO Financial Group serves more than 10 million personal, commercial, corporate and institutional customers in North America and internationally. BMO Financial Group has played an active role in the Hamilton community having pledged over $900,000 to various organizations such as the Art Gallery of Hamilton, Hamilton Health Sciences Centre and YMCA of Hamilton/Burlington in recent years.
About St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton & its Foundation
St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton is an acute care, teaching and research hospital affiliated with the Faculty of Health Sciences at McMaster University and Mohawk College. It consists of three Campuses: the Charlton Campus in downtown Hamilton, the King Campus in the east end of Hamilton, and the West 5th Campus on the West Mountain. Since 1890, St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton has cared for the community in a spirit of compassion, innovation, and commitment, a drive that has nurtured the growth of the organization into a multi-site, regional, tertiary, academic health science centre. For more information, visit www.stjoes.ca. St. Joseph's Healthcare Foundation is the fundraising arm of the Hospital. We work with individuals, corporations and foundations who are interested in supporting the Hospital that has been caring for this region for over 120 years. To learn more about St. Joseph's Healthcare Foundation visit www.stjoesfoundation.ca.
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For media inquiries:
Debbie Silva
Media Relations Coordinator
St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton
905-522-1155 ext. 33037
dsilva@stjoes.ca
Michelle Rickard
Communications Officer
St. Joseph's Healthcare Foundation
905-522-1155 ext. 35973
michelle@stjoesfoundation.ca
Alexis Brown
Media Relations Manager
BMO Financial Group
416-867-3915
alexis.brown@bmo.com