The “I Stand for Parkland” Capital Campaign
Parkland Memorial Hospital, built in 1954, is vastly undersized for current patient volumes. Dallas County’s population is projected to double by 2025, yet Parkland currently operates at full capacity with no flexibility for meeting greater demand. The way health care was delivered more than 50 years ago has changed greatly, and Parkland must change to effectively meet the health care needs of Dallas.
Recognizing the pressing need for a new hospital facility, the Parkland Foundation has embarked on a campaign to raise $150 million over the next five years to help fund the $1.2 billion project, which includes a 968-bed hospital, outpatient center and office space on the north side of Harry Hines Boulevard, across from the present facility. The “I Stand for Parkland” campaign will build on the grand Dallas tradition of public-private partnerships, setting the new standard for what can be done when champions of a noble cause – the health and well-being of our community – come together to support a vision for growth and innovation that will benefit all residents and help secure our region’s future prosperity.
Parkland Announces Largest-Ever Gifts to a Public Hospital Capital Campaign
$50 million from Simmons and $25 million from Rees-Jones make history for Dallas
DALLAS (September 10, 2008) – Two generous Dallas families made history today by announcing pledges totaling $75 million to Parkland Health & Hospital System toward the building of a new facility, the largest-ever gifts to a public hospital capital campaign.
Annette and Harold Simmons and their family issued a challenge grant of $50 million, which will be given over the next five years and is contingent upon the Parkland Foundation’s raising an additional $100 million for the new campus project. Jan and Trevor Rees-Jones pledged $25 million contingent on the passage of the Dallas County bond issue to be voted on November 4. Both are part of the Parkland Foundation’s new “I Stand For Parkland” five-year capital campaign to raise $150 million for a new hospital to replace Parkland’s aging main facility.
“We are firm believers in Parkland, and in the power of public-private partnerships to transform communities,” said Serena Simmons Connelly, director of the Harold Simmons Foundation. “I can’t imagine anybody in this city who has not been touched by Parkland personally. They may not even know it, but they have. From its Level I trauma center to immunization programs that prevent illnesses from spreading across the region, Parkland affects us all. For us, this was a wise investment, a way to have the greatest impact on the greatest number of people.”
Built in 1954, Parkland Memorial Hospital is 54 percent undersized for current patient volumes and further renovating the space would result in a loss of beds. Hospital leadership and a Dallas County Commissioner-appointed committee determined that the best way to continue meeting the health care needs of Dallas residents is to build a new facility.
“Parkland’s mission and our mission are very much in sync,” said Trevor Rees-Jones. “Our main goal is to focus on the underserved, the hurting, those in need who may be largely forgotten or overlooked. The need for a new facility was a compelling reason to give at a significant level. An opportunity of this magnitude doesn’t come along every day. Giving to this effort helps us advance our mission of caring for those who are less well-off financially or physically or mentally or spiritually for decades to come.”
In addition to the two lead gifts, Parkland has received several others: $1.5 million from Nexen Petroleum U.S.A., $1.25 million from the Parkland Auxiliary, $1 million from the Hirsch Family Foundation, $100,000 from Balfour Beatty Construction and Shari and Eric Krueger, $100,000 from the Boone Family Foundation, $100,000 from Nancy and Jeremy Halbreich and the Theodore H. and Annette G. Strauss Family Foundation, $100,000 from Mike A. Myers, $100,000 from Joan and Alan Walne, and $100,000 from an anonymous donor. With these, which put the campaign at nearly $80 million total, Parkland leads the nation in fundraising for a public hospital capital campaign.
“These gifts are historic,” said Veletta Forsythe Lill, co-chair of the Parkland Foundation capital campaign. “I am proud to be part of a community with such an incredible spirit of philanthropy, and proud to help lead the effort to build Dallas the hospital it deserves.”
Parkland Health & Hospital System is dedicated to the health and well-being of individuals and communities entrusted to its care. It has been named one of America’s Best Hospitals by U.S. News & World Report for 15 consecutive years. For more information, please contact Anne Leary (214) 266-2013 at Parkland Foundation.