A LETTER FROM LARA

You Make Breakthroughs Possible

BY LARA A. KALAFATIS, CHAIR | PHILANTHROPY INSTITUTE

Photo: Stephen Travarca

 

In this season of gratitude and reflection, let me take this opportunity not only to offer heartfelt thanks to all of you who have supported the most successful philanthropic effort in the 100-year history of Cleveland Clinic, but also to look back on some of the good that has come from your generosity.

As the celebration of Cleveland Clinic’s centennial winds down, we’re also in the final days of the Power of Every One Centennial Campaign. We’re closing in on our goal of $2.4 billion, thanks to more than 300,000 donors from every state in the U.S. and nearly 80 countries around the world.

Already through this campaign:

  • You helped build the Health Education Campus, anchored by the Eric and Sheila Samson Pavilion, where the next generation of doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals is preparing to work together by learning together.
  • You provided funding for more than 115 of the best and brightest ideas from our caregivers for improving the patient experience, via the Caregiver Catalyst Grants program.
  • You helped create more than 60 endowed positions, enabling Cleveland Clinic to recruit and to retain the most talented physicians and scientists.

The Power of Every One also made possible the following:

  • We invested in professional development for our caregivers through the Mandel Global Leadership and Learning Institute.
  • We accelerated lifesaving cancer research by raising more than $26 million for VeloSano Pilot Awards and VeloSano Impact Awards.
  • We launched a pathogen and global health research initiative that includes the Florida Research and Innovation Center.

Here at Cleveland Clinic, philanthropy has always fostered an environment where discoveries flourish. Our donors seed and speed breakthroughs that bring hope and healing.

The cover story in this issue of Cleveland Clinic Magazine is about the new Cleveland Clinic Brain Study. Led by Andre Machado, MD, PhD, and Imad Najm, MD, this ambitious initiative will track changes in the brains and bodies of thousands of individuals in an unprecedented effort to find cures for neurological diseases. Philanthropy will provide essential support for the study. “Rather than building more nursing homes and chasing after a staggering mental health crisis,” Dr. Najm says, “we can lessen the enormous financial, emotional and societal toll by disrupting these diseases once and for all.”

It’s yet another example of how Cleveland Clinic continues to rise to the greatest medical challenges as we enter our second century. And none of this happens without you.

Wishing you and yours a healthy holiday season!