New Era Gifts $1.5 Million to Push Phase I of Roswell Park’s ‘Making Room to Save Lives’ Campaign Over the Top

RPCI Moving Forward on Clinical Sciences Center Expansion in Fight Against Cancer

 

BUFFALO, N.Y.— Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI) closed out the $40 million Phase I of  ‘Making Room to Save Lives: The Campaign to Build a Greater Roswell Park’ today with the announcement of a $1.5 million donation from New Era during a press conference held this morning at RPCI.

The ‘Making Room to Save Lives’ campaign is RPCI’s strategic initiative to continue to meet the needs of its rapidly growing patient population.  A prominent component is building an 11-story, 142,000 square-foot Clinical Sciences Center at Michigan and Carlton Streets in Buffalo.

“The need for Roswell Park services has continued to grow.  Over the past five years, we have seen a nearly 40% increase in patients and we have seen an almost 60% rise in outpatient appointments over the past decade,” said Donald L. Trump, MD, FACP, Roswell Park President and CEO.  “With New Era’s generous donation and that of previous major contributors, the new Clinical Sciences Center will allow us to meet the current and future needs of our patients," he said.

A supporter of cancer research, prevention and education as one of its four key platforms, New Era’s gift to Roswell Park continues a long tradition of philanthropy.

“At New Era, we strongly believe in giving back to the communities that we work and live in. One important way we do this is by engaging in partnerships and signature programs that focus on finding a cure for cancer," said Christopher Koch, CEO of New Era. "We have had a longstanding relationship with Roswell Park and are elated that we can help with their ongoing efforts."

Joined with the adjacent main hospital building via connecting bridges, the proposed RPCI Clinical Sciences Center will feature many expansion highlights including:

• Breast Center
• New Mammography Center
• New Chemo-Infusion Clinic
• Adolescent and Young Adult Clinic
• Patient Education and Survivorship Programs to reach patients, caregivers, and family members
• State-of-the-art office facilities and space for clinician-scientists to analyze data from clinical studies

A total of $40 million in Phase I has been raised by the Roswell Park Alliance Foundation to support the building of the Center. Construction for Phase I is scheduled to begin in Spring 2013.  An additional $10 million will be raised in Phase II for the Center’s “build out” and shell space requirements.

Dr. Trump gave special credit and thanks for the fundraising success to the “Making Room to Save Lives” campaign committee and its co-chairs Donna M. Gioia and Scott Bieler.

The ‘Making Room to Save Lives’ campaign kicked off in June 2011 with a generous $10 million donation from the ‘Circle of 10’ – a collaborative $10 million gift from 10 well known business and philanthropic leaders in Western New York, including some Roswell Park patients, who each gifted $1 million. ‘Circle of 10’ members include:

• Mr. Scott R. Bieler
• The William and Nancy Gacioch Family
• The Garman Family
• Anne and Richard Gioia and Donna and Anthony Gioia
• G. Wayne and Charline (Bunkie) Hawk
• The Jacobs Family
• Patrick P. Lee
• Stanford and Judith Lipsey
• Lawrence Minet, PhD
• Ralph C. Wilson, Jr.

In total, 435 donors contributed to Phase I of the ‘Making Room to Save Lives’ campaign including:

• Margaret L. Wendt Foundation
• Patrick P. Lee Foundation
• First Niagara Foundation
• Corning Foundation – Corning, N.Y.
• James H. Cummings Foundation
• Paul J. Koessler Foundation
• Eastman Foundation
• Ferguson Electric Foundation
• Individual and anonymous donors
• Faculty and staff at Roswell Park

More About the CSC

The CSC will house a new expanded Chemotherapy Clinic (doubling the size of the current Chemo Clinic) that will offer patients a picturesque view of Buffalo’s skyline; a Breast Center that will for the first time offer community mammography services; and a Patient Education/Survivorship Center for Roswell Park’s 31,000 patients and their families. The building’s presence also will allow many clinics and patient care areas to be expanded and renovated within the existing main hospital. For more information on RPCI’s ‘Making Room to Save Lives: The Campaign to Build a Greater Roswell Park’ campaign visit www.roswellpark.org/giving/donate/capital-campaign.