VGH wing renamed in honour of Leon Judah Blackmore after $18M donation
Centennial Pavilion to be rechristened after donation from late Vancouver developer's foundation
Vancouver General Hospital's Centennial Pavilion will be renamed after the late Vancouver developer Leon Judah Blackmore, following a $18.4 million donation to the VGH and UBC Hospital Foundation from the foundation he started.
VGH and UBC say the money will be put toward a cardiology diagnostic centre, men's health, a hybrid operating room and a sleep disorders program.
"[Blackmore] had the utmost respect for our work, and he made it his mission to help improve patient care through funding research and initiatives that would truly make a difference," said Dr. Jaap Hamburger, a cardiologist with Vancouver Coastal Health, in a statement.
Barbara Grantham, president and CEO of the VGH and UBC Hospital Foundation, said the number, 18.4 million, has personal significance for Blackmore.
Blackmore was a Vancouver real estate developer who passed away in 2015. But he was raised in an Orthodox Jewish family in Poland, eventually fleeing the Holocaust and settling in Canada.
According to a a news release from Vancouver Coastal Health, the Hebrew word for life is "chai" and is associated with the number 18, so giving gifts in multiples of 18 is a symbolic "gift of life."
"This gift will make a difference in the lives of our patients," Grantham said.