Philanthropist Michael Lee-Chin donates $10 million to Joseph Brant Hospital

The fundraising drive for a new and refurbished Joseph Brant Hospital got a giant boost at a gala event in Burlington Saturday evening.

Philanthropist Michael Lee-Chin known for his donations to the Royal Ontario Museum and others gave the Hospital $10 million dollars.

It is the single biggest donation in the history of the City of Burlington.

His gift, plus the money raised from the crystal gala event and silent auction pushes the project more than halfway to it’s $60 million dollar goal.

Lee-Chin says the project is important for the future of the city.

“The hospital, first is such a wonderful centre of Burlington. It represents what the future of Burlington could be, should be. So we just wanted to make sure that the Hospital which will have increasing demand because of the aging population, is fully equipped to meet the needs of the 21-st century.”

Joseph Brant President and CEO Eric Vandewall says Lee-Chin’s contribution has had a dramatic impact on the drive.

“Every campaign be it ours or anybody else’s always looks for a lead donor. That relationship is so important in campaigns. Mr Lee-Chin is now our lead donor. So what this will do is one will really propel our campaign forward, inspire others to give and it really puts us now at greater than 60% or our campaign goal.”

Construction on a new 7 story tower is set to begin in the Spring. Over 170 more beds will be added as well as 9 operating rooms and expanded cancer care.