John Muir Health Foundation Expands Capital Campaign, Announces Naming Opportunities at Concord Hospital

Concord-Based Physician Named as Chair of New Campaign Cabinet
Business Wire
December 3, 2008

WALNUT CREEK, Calif., Dec 03, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- John Muir Health Foundation, the fundraising division of John Muir Health, today announced an expansion of its Capital Campaign, "Breaking New Ground Right Here," to raise funds for expansion and renovation of the John Muir Health medical centers in Walnut Creek and Concord. This new phase of the Campaign combines the fundraising efforts for both hospitals and identifies new naming opportunities at John Muir Medical Center - Concord Campus.

As part of the next phase of the Campaign, John Muir Health Foundation has formed a new Campaign Cabinet, comprised of 14 prominent civic leaders. The Campaign Cabinet, led by Chair Michael L. Levine, M.D. will strategize fundraising efforts necessary to meet the goal of $56 million for both campuses by 2011. Philanthropic contributions raised by the Foundation's campaign will provide vital funding for both projects, estimated to cost $800 million.

"Both hospitals are expanding to address current capacity pressures and accommodate emerging medical technologies," said Levine, a longtime oncologist at the Concord campus and current member of the John Muir Health Foundation's board of directors. "This Campaign is not only the biggest fundraising effort in the history of John Muir Health, but it's also an invitation to the entire community to help support the tradition of award-winning, locally managed healthcare we've had for nearly 80 years." The new naming opportunities at Concord are available for Campaign gifts from $25,000 to $10 million and include various elements of the Cardiovascular Institute and Patient Care Tower, Emergency Department facilities, and other critical care areas of the hospital. Significant naming opportunities are also available at the Walnut Creek campus.

"We invite individuals, families, foundations, and businesses to become major donors and help offset the $800 million cost of expansion and required seismic upgrades," said Milt Smith, president of the John Muir Health Foundation. "We are committed to broadening regional support for the Campaign and we hope that the dedication of Dr. Levine and the leaders in our Campaign Cabinet will inspire greater community awareness and philanthropic support for John Muir Health." Dr. Levine joined the medical staff at John Muir Medical Center in 1978, and has played a significant role in the development of the Radiation Oncology Department at John Muir Medical Center - Concord Campus. A former member of the Mt. Diablo Hospital Foundation Board, Dr. Levine has himself been a generous donor to the Concord Campus, inspiring several major gifts from grateful patients, and hopes that even more people will participate in the Capital Campaign.

For more information about Campaign naming opportunities and how to make a contribution to the "Breaking New Ground Right Here" Capital Campaign, contact the John Muir Health Foundation at 925-947-4449 or e-mail: foundation@johnmuirhealth.com

About John Muir Health Foundation

Established in 1979, the John Muir Health Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds to support the nonprofit John Muir Health organization, which serves communities in Contra Costa County, parts of Solano County and Marin County. Locally governed John Muir Health is a leader in high quality patient care that continues to help make possible a number of "firsts" in the region, including the first Oncology Center in Northern California to offer breakthrough technology in the diagnosis of lung and esophageal cancer, the first Novalis stereotactic radio surgery system in Northern California, the first Level III neonatal intensive care nursery in Contra Costa County, and the first and only designated Trauma Center for Contra Costa County.

(Posted December 3, 2008)