Chicago philanthropist Ann Lurie, along with a committee of leading philanthropists and Chicago civic leaders, will host a gala to offer a first look at the newly-completed Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago.
The event will be held on Friday, April 20th at 6 p.m. at Lurie Children’s, 225 E. Chicago Avenue. Guests will enjoy exclusive, first-look tours of the hospital, dinner and entertainment. Highlights of the evening include actress Sarah Jessica Parker as guest host and a performance by Harry Connick Jr..
“The goal of the event is to celebrate the completion of the state-of-the-art, 23-story building and to raise an additional $5 million for its fundraising campaign,” said Lurie. “Philanthropy is the cornerstone of this endeavor, and when donors see the unique and healing elements of this facility, I hope that they will be as amazed and proud as I am to know they played such a vital role in creating it.”
Children’s Memorial Hospital will be renamed Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago in recognition of Lurie’s $100 million gift. On June 9, the hospital plans to move up to 200 patients from Lincoln Park to the campus of its academic partner, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, where Lurie Children’s is located. The new location will enable the hospital to recruit top pediatric specialists, and its close proximity to Prentice Women’s Hospital will expedite the care of critically ill newborns.
“The new hospital will be the catalyst for a new era in pediatric medicine,” said Patrick Magoon, President and CEO of Children’s Memorial Hospital. “We are grateful to all those who are helping us further our mission to provide superior care to the region’s most critically ill and injured children now and in the future.”
The creation of Lurie Children’s has been a community-wide effort with more than 250,000 people donating to the hospital’s Heroes for Life campaign so far. More than 20 of Chicago’s leading art, cultural and civic institutions have helped to design unique healing environments that promote education and discovery for hospitalized children and their families.
“Those who are joining us at the Gala are individuals who care deeply about the health and well-being of children,” said Lurie, who worked as a pediatric intensive care nurse at Children’s Memorial. “Together, we have helped build a child-friendly facility that is designed to increase patient safety, to accommodate new technology and to make care more efficient for Chicago’s children and their families.”
A number of events in May and June will mark the hospital’s historic move including Move for the Kids 5K Run/Walk in which participants will run/walk from the current location to the new site downtown on Saturday, May 12; and community open houses on Friday, May 11 and Saturday, May 12 after the run.
Children’s Memorial Hospital is one of the top pediatric hospitals in the country according to U.S. News & World Report. It is the pediatric training ground for Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, and one of only a handful of U.S. children’s hospitals with a dedicated pediatric research center. The hospital relies on philanthropic support to care for the more than 148,000 children it serves each year.
A limited number of table sponsorships are still available, call 312-553-2000 or go to pjhchicago.com/luriechildrenshospital.
