50 years of impact

The Mount Sinai Hospital Auxiliary, a fundraising juggernaut founded more than 20 years earlier, commits to raising $3 million to help establish the Mount Sinai Hospital Research Institute, a vision that would put Mount Sinai on the world stage and drive excellence that would bring the laboratory bench closer to bedside.

The Friends for Life campaign cabinet comes together to raise an unprecedented $75 million for Mount Sinai Hospital. The cabinet includes Mount Sinai leaders and many donor families who are still supporting us, 50 years later.

Founded by Miles Nadal, Leadership Sinai brings together a dynamic network of professionals dedicated to supporting Sinai Health’s highest priorities. In the 30 years since its inception, Leadership Sinai has raised over $21 million for the world-class Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute.

The Foundation's first campaign, The Best Medicine, surpasses its $100-million goal. More than a fundraising campaign, The Best Medicine was a mantra and a commitment from every physician, researcher, nurse and staff member at Mount Sinai Hospital to deliver exceptional care and uncover new knowledge to treat the diseases of the time.

The R. Samuel McLaughlin Foundation establishes the Dr. L. Siminovitch Young Scientist Fund to support promising early-career researchers at the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute. This gift has helped shape some of the world's leading biomedical research by enabling young scientists to launch their own laboratories, secure essential resources and advance pioneering studies – pushing the boundaries of discovery to improve patient care.

Another iconic Mount Sinai Hospital Auxiliary gala takes place at the National Trade Centre at Exhibition Place. “A Summer Evening“ turned the space into a beautiful garden party featuring the disco queen herself, Donna Summer, who had over 1,100 guests dancing the night away to “Love to Love You, Baby“ and “Last Dance“ — all to raise critical funds for Mount Sinai Hospital.

This year marks the start of a transformative relationship between Sinai Health and the philanthropic Kimel families. For the next 20 years, Warren and Debbie Kimel and Ron and Vanessa Kimel and their respective families invest an extraordinary $24 million in state-of-the-art imaging equipment and facilities, enhancing a medical discipline that impacts nearly every one of our patients.

Inspired by the compassionate end-of-life care Temmy Latner received at Mount Sinai Hospital, the Latner family establishes the Temmy Latner Centre for Palliative Care with an incredible gift of $1.5 million. Through the family's ongoing support over the years, now totalling over $11 million, the Centre has evolved into an internationally recognized leader in hospital- and home-based palliative care, supporting patients across Sinai Health and back into the community.

Dr. John Roder, esteemed researcher at Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute until his passing in 2018, makes a groundbreaking discovery that the malfunction of a gene called DISC 1 causes symptoms of schizophrenia and depression. This is the first study to discern a common genetic link between the two illnesses — a discovery he hoped would one day lead to new, more effective treatments for schizophrenia. Dr. Roder inspired the research community by pivoting mid-career from his world-renowned expertise in the richly funded area of cancer to focus on unravelling these complex brain disorders when he learned his son had schizophrenia.

Internationally renowned investigator Dr. Daniel Durocher makes a discovery that changes the course of cancer research and treatment development around the world. From their work at the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Dr. Durocher and team identify a gene that helps guide BRCA1, a protein that repairs DNA damage and, when mutated, is known to cause breast cancer. By guiding the BRCA1 protein to areas of damaged DNA, this gene helps ensure that the required repairs are made. The finding, published in top academic journal Science, opens the door to new, more sophisticated cancer treatments.

Initially established through the Katz Group of Companies in 2008, this 20-year commitment now held by Rexall Funding is Sinai Health Foundation's largest corporate partnership. With this generous $10-million pledge, Rexall contribtutes to our critical Sinai Fund, which provides flexible funding for our highest priorities and critical needs. One of the key areas that has been able to thrive through this pledge is our caregiver support programs via the Rexall Care Network, including sponsorship of Caregiver Sinai Live in 2024.

Famed and provocative Chef Gordon Ramsay helps Mount Sinai Hospital raise over $1 million for women's cancer research with the Chef's Challenge for a Cure Fundraiser. Five of the city’s top chefs — Massimo Capra, Lynn Crawford, Jamie Kennedy, David Rocco and Mark McEwan — lead their teams of top fundraisers through a three-course menu to battle it out in Ramsay's kitchen. Over 500 guests were brought along for the ride with television personality host Thea Andrews.

An incredibly impactful $15-million gift from Gerry Schwartz and Heather Reisman enables significant advancments in emergency medicine. Their generous gift enables the physical expansion of the Schwartz/Reisman Emergency Centre to help meet growing patient needs, as well as the creation of the Schwartz/Reisman Emergency Medicine Institute (SREMI). The first of its kind in North America, SREMI continues to propel research, education and policy development to drive greater impact and innovation in emergency medicine.

A renewal project entirely funded by generous donors transforms Mount Sinai Hospital's main floor and lobby to provide patients with the access, services and respite that are essential to exceptional care. The state-of-the-art Brent and Lynn Belzberg Donor Recognition Centre showcases our gratitude with a digital canvas bound to make a lasting impression on visitors. The Hennick Family Wellness Gallery, with an important collection from the late Sorel Etrog, provides a calming space for patients and visitors. Renewal also includes the Mark and Natty Nashman entrance way, Robert Rubinoff Hall of Chairs, Phillip and Peggy DeZwirek Family Boulevard, Sam and Sarah Hennick Information Centre, Helen Oelbaum Simpson Registration, Stupp/Cohen Patient Education Pavilion, including the Cyril and Dorothy, Joel and Jill Reitman Patient Education Room and the RioCan Food Hall.

The Slaight Family Foundation pledges $10 million to advance maternal care in Canada and internationally. This gift is recognized with the naming of the Slaight Family Labour & Delivery Unit, equipped with 19 spacious birthing suites and it enables maternity care education to family physicians through the extension of the Ada Slaight and Slaight Family Directorship in Family Medicine Maternity Care. In addition, the Slaight Family Maternal Equity Fund provides prenatal care and perinatal mental health outreach services to vulnerable women in Canada and Ethiopia.

The Sinai Health System is born from the successful voluntary amalgamation of Mount Sinai Hospital, Bridgepoint Active Healthcare, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute and system partner Circle of Care. Just two years later, Sinai Health leadership is recognized for this vision with a Certificate of Honorary Commendation at the Health Achieve Conference, the Ontario Hospital Association’s signature event. As a mark of Sinai Health's 10-year annivesary, we continue to celebrate this innovative approach to seamless coordination of patients across different care settings, enabling us to better serve our community.

Award-winning neuroscientist Dr. Graham Collingridge identifies a mechanism that triggers neurodegeneration and memory loss, laying the foundation for Memantine, a leading drug for Alzheimer’s disease. Dr. Collingridge went on to win the world’s most valuable prize for brain research, The Brain Prize, the following year.
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Renowned endocrinologist Dr. Bernard Zinman makes a groundbreaking discovery that a new therapy, SGLT2 inhibitors, improves glucose control, lowers blood pressure and also reduces cardiovascular death by 38 per cent for those with type 2 diabetes. These inhibitors have since become the treatment of choice for people with diabetes and cardiovascular or kidney complications.

Led by Sinai Health Foundation Board of Directors Co-Chair Howard Sokoloski and his wife Linda Frum, the Builders’ Campaign brings together some of the city’s largest real estate developers to support the redevelopment of Mount Sinai Hospital’s Schwartz/Reisman Emergency Centre. With the campaign running until 2021, more than $16.5 million were raised to fund expansions and improvements within the Centre.

An $11-million dollar gift from Miles Nadal sees Mount Sinai Hospital’s specialized cardiology program gain increased prominence and resources. With the naming of the Miles Nadal Heart Centre, it becomes a destination cardiology centre that brings together expertise in distinct patient populations, including women with heart disease who are pregnant or wishing to become pregnant; patients with advanced-stage heart failure; and those needing treatment for sleep apnea and breathlessness.

A new and incredibly rare type of cell implicated in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is discovered by Dr. Jeff Wrana of the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute and a team of researchers. This cell, found in the intestinal lining and coined the “revival stem cell,” creates new adult stem cells for a short 24-hour period following damage to the intestinal lining, thereby playing a critical role in rebuilding this tissue. The discovery provides new insights and understanding into IBD and certain infectious diseases, and it ultimately improves treatments for patients living with IBD.

In a swift response to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Sinai Health Foundation establishes the Sinai Health CEO Fund to provide essential support for our patients and front-line health-care teams. Powered by donors, this unrestricted fund is designed to help us stay agile in our response to emerging and unforeseen needs during these unprecendented times. This includes supporting the development of a robotic system to process blood tests on a massive scale at the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, providing critical data needed for public health decisions on immunization programs.

A group of women philanthropists, led by Maxine Granovsky Gluskin, recognize the need to empower our nursing leaders to reach new heights in patient care through research and innovation. Inspired by the efforts of Ezras Noshem 100 years ago and the role of nursing leaders in the pandemic of the time, their gift of $10 million brings about a first for Canada: the Centre for Nursing Excellence.  Jointly housed at Mount Sinai and Hennick Bridgepoint Hospitals, the Centre recruits leading nurse ccientists and empowers front-line nurses to lead research initiatives that are created and delivered at the point of care. The Centre for Nursing Excellence isdesigned in collaboration with University of Toronto’s Lawrence Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing.

A $10-million gift from Howard and Mindy Ganz enhances Mount Sinai Hospital’s surgical capacity, enabling its expert team to perform more complex operations and solidifying its position as a national leader in surgical care. Named in honour of the siblings' parents, the Sam and Gitta Ganz Surgical Floor is a key component of Renew Sinai.

Part of the Driscoll family’s $10-million gift to Sinai Health establishes an infectious diseases endowed fellowship program. The Driscoll Family Fellowship Program in Infectious Diseases supports and nurtures Canada’s emerging infectious diseases experts.

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The inaugural Raptors for Research 3-on-3 basketball tournament, presented by Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, raises more than $750,000 in support of the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, highlighting the power of sport to bring people together for something bigger than themselves. The vision of long-time Sinai Health supporter Larry Tanenbaum brings this incredible partnership together, now going on to its third year.

The Gala of the Century marks an extraordinary milestone in Mount Sinai Hospital's 100-year history and honours our legacy of perseverance, community service and health-care excellence. Hosted by Martin Short and featuring performances by Michael Bublé, our 1,800 guests also enjoyed an exclusive first look at the documentary created by acclaimed filmmaker Barry Avrich. The Gala raises a remarkable $12.5 million in support of the Sinai 100 Fund — a fund that will allow us to respond to urgent needs across the Hospital into the next century.

We celebrate the completion of the largest redevelopment in the history of Mount Sinai Hospital, cutting the ribbon to mark Renew Sinai's last milestone: the massive transformation of the Schwartz/Reisman Emergency Centre. Through the generosity of donors, more than 300,000 square feet of Mount Sinai was redeveloped over the seven-year project, all while continuing to deliver high-quality care. In total, more than 140 distinct projects were completed, touching almost all of the Hospital’s 20 floors.