BOSTON, Mass. — The ownership group behind the Boston Celtics has pledged Boston Children’s Hospital a sum topping more than $200 million, a donation the hospital announced Thursday and called the largest of its kind in its history.
The money is being given together with the Boston Celtics Shamrock Foundation and is spread across several hospital priorities. The biggest is a new pediatric mental health facility that the hospital wants to make the best in the nation, built around reaching kids in crisis sooner.
Other pieces of the pledge cover new treatment research for sick children, study of how adult illnesses take root early in life, advanced training for pediatric nurses at the hospital, plus a dedicated innovation fund for bold ideas in children’s health. Part of the gift will also grow family-centered programs that encourage healthy habits in local communities.
Hospital chief executive Dr. Kevin Churchwell said the real measure of the gift will be the lives it saves rather than the record it sets. Celtics chairman and governor Bill Chisholm described it as a commitment to the next generation, and team co-owner Rob Hale noted he had seen the hospital’s work with patients and families up close.
Churchwell also noted that parents usually reach the hospital during the hardest stretch of their lives, searching for answers about a sick child, and said the Celtics money will let the staff speed up that work and reach far more kids. Chisholm added that the team and the hospital both believe big goals take everyone pulling together, and he framed the donation as a win for children well beyond the city limits.
The team plans to keep the celebration going at its Friday night home game, with tributes to current and former patients, families and hospital staff throughout the evening.
Filed under: Boston MA Health News
