Phil Knight and wife give OHSU $125M for cardiovascular institute
PORTLAND, Ore. - Oregon Health and Science University announced a "transformational" $125 million gift from Nike co-founder Phil Knight and his wife, Penny, for the foundation of a cardiovascular research institute.
The hospital promises the new institute will speed the development of treatment strategies for cardiovascular disease and get them to patients faster.
"The gift is the largest in OHSU history and may likely be the largest private contribution ever made by living donors to benefit a single Oregon organization," the university announced in a news release. "It is the Knights’ second landmark gift to OHSU, following a 2008 pledge of $100 million that advanced the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute."
The donation will establish the OHSU Cardiovascular Institute, the goal of which is to "accelerate new prevention, diagnostic and treatment strategies being developed in the laboratory and transition them into patient care clinics as rapidly as possible."
The gift is expected to help in recruiting donors and bridging the co-called translational gap between the data found in research and its application in a clinical setting.
“Phil and Penny Knight have made a gift to all Oregonians,” OHSU President Joe Robertson, M.D., M.B.A., said. “OHSU is proud to have once again earned their trust as a partner in creating a healthier Oregon and a healthier world. Phil and Penny share our confidence that we can finally reduce the many, many preventable deaths each year due to cardiovascular disease by innovating, collaborating and educating.”
“Penny and I are pleased to help upgrade cardiovascular health in Oregon and around the world. Drs. Starr and Kaul have built a great program in research, care and outreach, and we are excited about what it can contribute to the fight against these deadly diseases,” Phil Knight said in a statement.
OHSU Foundation interim president Constance French says the gift is "changing the game" in the field of cardiovascular medicine.
OHSU physicians Albert Starr and Sanjiv Kaul will lead the project, aiming to confront the entire spectrum of cardiovascular disease, from prevention to regeneration of tissue after a heart attack. The gift is "changing the game" in the field of cardiovascular medicine, said Constance French, interim president of the OHSU Foundation.
The $125 million donation is the largest in OHSU history. Hospital spokeswoman Tamara Hargens-Bradley said the hospital has no plans yet to announce whether the institute will require new construction.
"It's all being sorted out right now," Hargens-Bradley said.
Starr, a surgeon who performed Oregon's first open-heart surgery and the state's first transplant, arrived at the hospital in 1958. Starr also implanted the world's first artificial human heart valve in 1960.
"We know from personal experience that the most meaningful innovations happen when clinicians and researchers work together across disciplines to solve big problems," Starr said in comments distributed by the hospital. "That idea will be hard-wired into the culture of this institute."
Part of the purpose of the center is to partner with pharmaceutical companies and device manufacturers to get from the research stage to clinical applications sooner.
Hey Phil, how about throwing a few bucks at Oregon State......
so what does he want named after him this time ? Obviously not done for altruistic reasons as it would have been donated anomously...
 @Mazda84 Lol shut your mouth moron.  You can talk after you donate 126 million dollars anonymously. Â
 @beeemdubya  @Mazda84 That's right only money has the right to talk in this country....
Does this forgive exploiting foreign workers and fleecing the status-seeking dimwits that shell out a weeks pay for sneakers? Yeah, in a way it kind of does. Good on you Mr. Knight.Â
Something tells me he will need some heart work coming up and has No health insurance....
It's mitt's healthcare plan for.....
I guess not ..you???
Oh and the stipulation is it can only be used to help him....
Just sayin.....
Do you know how many  Lamborfeeties ( Lamborghini ) priced shoes he had to sell to do that??
AÂ Chinese boat load do you know how much it must have cost him??
About $200,000 at cost...
Thanks phil...
Just sayin...Â
This is FANTASTIC! Thanks Phil....
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 @Gymbo He ALREADY PAYS a boatload of money to the Beaverton school district....
 @August100  @Gymbo Is that like a boat load of shoes from china????
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 @Gymbo Seriously, shut up.  I doubt you have $125M to give.  YOUR misguided in your comment above.
I don't see how someone can give away that much money.
@jpk
because he makes it on the backs of others by fleecing them in lousy pay and no benefits to those that have been ourtsourced overseas. He is a cheapskate
 @jpk it is called Gifting and can be reported on Taxes.
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So many people will benefit from their generosity. Thank you!
Perfect! Thank you, Mr. Knight. This is why this country needs RICH people.
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@katufanman
No we need people who really mean it when they help others. He does it for the "glory and attention" and having things named after him...
 @Mazda84  @katufanman So, OHSU should turn down his gift? Phil Knight has contributed exponentially more to humankind than you and me.
Phil Knight may have his issues but lack of generosity is not one of them. Thank you Mr. Knight for a tremendous gift that should benefit mankind for decades to come.
 @I812 Benefit mankind? Will the benefits of $125 million in specific research money even reach 125 million people? No. Unless you count how many people are estimated to read the ads on the back page of the Oregonian that say "Dont eat cheeseburgers! A cardio-healthy message from your friends at OHSU"
@Do Yes, it is highly possible this generous donation could benefit mankind. Have you ever heard of penicillin? Vaccines? It is possible some breakthrough in cardio-vascular research could result that would reach a substantial portion of the population.
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What is really stupid is your comment regarding The Oregonian. Have you any clue as to the readership of that rag?Â
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I suspect you wake up sucking lemons and then move onto something sour. What a sad way to go through life.
 @I812  @Do OHSU claims their use of the funds will include public awareness and regardless of "readership" numbers the "rag" does not have a policy that restricts any entity from repeat ads. (Think outside a box for a split second) Publish an ad for 10 years and it'll be estimated that 125 million people read it! But the sad reality is...my comment regarding the Oregonian included a tongue and a cheek sunshine. I assure you the news of a $125 million dollar donation will reach more people than the any benefit gained by the money itself. As for Penicillin and any vaccine on earth. The cost isnt in the drug or the research, its in the distribution and trust me $125 million bucks wouldnt get a cardio drug to every OREGONIAN let alone mankind! Apples to apples.
 @Do  @I812 OUCH reality slap.....
Phil needs a better profile pic... one that doesn't make him look like a creepy pedo.
 @A74R1 When you're worth BILLIONS you can look any way you want to; AND HE LOOKS GOOD TODAY!
 @August100  @A74R1 Yea a so you know he was going for the creepy pedo look K??Â
 @A74R1 Well he his not a particularly attractive man.  He may be generous, but not particularly handsome, and that is a pretty good picture of him actually. Â