The legacy continues

May 12, 2017 | (12) Comments

As many of you can see, Tower E is progressing very well. This new inpatient pediatric tower is the realization of the CareFirst initiative we launched a few years ago to provide a solution that will ensure our ability to care for children who will need our specialized services in the future. The tower will house care and services for some of our most critically ill patients, and allow us to provide them with the best experience possible as we help them heal.

Legacy_Ver_TwoWe are looking forward to opening the doors of the tower next year. But today, I am thrilled to share an exciting milestone. We have reached the point in the construction process where we need to determine the official name of the new building. After careful consideration, I am pleased to announce that we have arrived at the name Legacy Tower.

This name represents our founding and everyone who led the charge and the fundraising to create a hospital in Houston dedicated to the care of children. In the 1940s, a small group of Houston physicians, philanthropists and community leaders saw a need for a pediatric hospital and went to work to bring it to fruition. Proceeds from The Pin Oak Charity Horse Show in 1947 helped establish the Texas Children’s Hospital Foundation, and in 1950, Leopold L. Meyer secured a $1 million gift from Lillie and Jim Abercrombie to build Texas Children’s Hospital. There was only one condition – that it be “open to every sick or hurt child with no restrictions on religion, color, or whether or not they can pay.” Texas Children’s Hospital began with that promise, and a rich legacy began to take shape.

Legacy Tower also will be a tribute to the many years of dedicated service our Board of Trustees and Board leaders have provided to the hospital. We have been blessed with the visionary, aspirational leadership of dedicated Board members since the hospital’s founding. And to this day, we continue to reap the rewards of a Board just as intently focused on the mission of this hospital as our founders were and who are as passionate about exceptional patient care as our physicians, nurses and employees. Texas Children’s has no doubt flourished because of the legacy of their incredible leadership.

And finally, Legacy Tower represents all of the advancements in pediatric medicine that have occurred here at Texas Children’s. From the first successful separation of twins conjoined at the liver and pericardium in 1965 to the most recent successful separation of the beautiful Mata conjoined twins, Adeline and Knatalye, and every step in between, Texas Children’s physicians and surgeons have pioneered breakthrough treatments. They revolutionized care for children and women around the world, continuing the rich legacy that began simply as dreams and ambitions decades ago.

We are very excited about Legacy Tower and all the patients and families who will receive care in this wonderful new space. Most importantly, we are grateful because opening Legacy Tower will mean never having to say no to a child who needs the complex, highly advanced care that only Texas Children’s can provide. This new tower, anchored proudly in the heart of the Texas Medical Center, will be a place of hope and healing for children from all over the world. And for us, it will be a reminder of all those who came first, dreamed big and worked so very hard so that we might be here today, tomorrow and 100 years from now, achieving the unthinkable. This is Texas Children’s legacy.


 

12 Responses to “The legacy continues”

  1. Eva Alcorn

    Mr. Wallace, Thank you for your continued commitment to the CareFirst initiative launched a few years ago. Offering our most critically ill patients the best experience possible will indeed assist in the baring of the illness and the healing of the illness. LEGACY continues…

  2. Michael Towne

    A very well-thought out and dignified name, that will honor all those that have given in the past, and those that will be treated there now and in the future. Well done!

  3. Charmaine C. Mondarte

    I’m pleased with the chosen name “Legacy”. We all make our marks and we all make a difference in somebody’s life. Texas Children’s Hospital still makes a mark and continues to make a difference in my life. This is an amazing culture we have. Today, tomorrow and always live in our service with heart.

  4. Jackie Ward

    The new name, Legacy Tower, absolutely captures what TCH is to the community and what the founders intended for it to be. Great choice and thank you for your leadership!

  5. Barry Zorman

    With a wonderful new building, I hope that the street level and building signage can be improved to help confused families find their way to the correct entrance. I have had to help families who made a wrong right turn onto Bates from Fannin hoping to get to the TCH emergency room. Not every family has a smart phone or GPS. Thanks.

  6. Patricia Jokerst, RPSGT, CCSH, RST

    As this wonderful environment grows, so does the excitement…Something to be proud of as a new team player for TCH, and watching the 21st floor in the West Tower, as it rises into the sky. I am extremely honored to be a part of this organization!

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