The next 50 starts now
Fifty years of giving brought us here. What we build together will carry us forward.
For 50 years, donors have helped shape health care regionally and beyond. You’ve funded research before results were certain, supported innovation in its earliest stages. and made possible the equipment and care patients and families rely on every day. This anniversary is about you – the role you’ve played in making this impact possible, and the difference you will continue to make in the years ahead.
Have a story to share?
The next chapter begins now, and it belongs to all of us.
Whether you were a patient, donor, staff member, or supporter, your experience is part of this legacy. Share your Hamilton Health Sciences story and help inspire the next 50 years of care.
50 years of support
What began as a community effort to build our hospitals has grown into a network serving more than three million people across our region.
Cornerstone of Care Campaign (2006)
Founded in 1976, Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation has spent 50 years inspiring philanthropy in support of care, research and innovation across Hamilton Health Sciences.
Originally established as Hamilton Civic Hospitals Foundation, the organization evolved through the 1997 merger with Chedoke-McMaster Foundation to become Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation as we know it today. This steadfast commitment to local hospital care has expanded into internationally renowned, life-changing work that reaches patients and families across the region and around the globe.
For five decades, donors have helped fund equipment, research, education and advances in patient care across multiple hospital sites. Your investment has helped redefine quality care while expanding the reach of Hamilton Health Sciences. Today is about celebrating you – and the impact your support is making right now.
Five decades. One shared journey. Lasting impact.
Every milestone on this timeline began with people choosing to give.
Explore 50 years of philanthropy in action – from early investments in equipment and patient care to the research and innovation shaping health care today. Each milestone reflects a community that chose to build something bigger than any one person or institution could build alone.
1976 – Hamilton Civic Hospitals Foundation is created, serving Hamilton General Hospital and Henderson General Hospital.
1988 – McMaster Children’s Hospital is founded with a dedicated pediatric focus.
1996 – Hamilton Health Sciences is formed when amalgamations between Hamilton’s hospitals occurs: Hamilton General Hospital, Henderson General Hospital, McMaster Children’s Hospital, Chedoke Hospital.
1997 – Hamilton Civic Hospitals Foundation and Chedoke-McMaster Foundation merge together to form Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation serving Hamilton General Hospital, Henderson General Hospital, Chedoke Hospital and McMaster Children’s Hospital. Hamilton Regional Cancer Centre Foundation was formed this same year and would later join with Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation.
1998 – Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation distributes its first one million dollars raised to the hospitals.
2006 – Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation concludes its “Cornerstone of Care” capital campaign, raising more than $100 million for Hamilton Health Sciences hospitals with the redevelopment of the Henderson Hospital being a key area of focus.
2008 – St. Peter’s joins Hamilton Health Sciences, bringing with it specialized geriatric care.
2010 – With gratitude for their continued support of health care in Hamilton, the Henderson Hospital, along with the Regional Cancer Centre, are renamed Juravinski Hospital and Cancer Centre in honour of Charles and Margaret Juravinski.
2011 – Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation hosts its first Strides for the General event supporting Hamilton General Hospital.
2012 – Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation launches Walk and Wheel, its new fundraising event in support of McMaster Children’s Hospital.
2014 – Chedoke Hospital closes its doors, with pediatric care now being concentrated at McMaster Children’s Hospital. The CIBC Breast Awareness Centre opens at Juravinski Cancer Centre, funded by $5 million that was provided by donor generosity.
2018 – Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation hosts its inaugural Illuminight event in support of Juravinski Hospital and Cancer Centre.
2020 – With the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, support was provided to the Foundation through monetary donations, and gifts of PPE equipment that provided Hamilton Health Sciences frontline workers with critical supplies.
2025 – Strides For the General is retired, and replaced with a new “polar dip” event, The Hammer Plunge, supporting emergency care at Hamilton General Hospital. McMaster Children’s Hospital Foundation underwent a rebrand to officially become MacKids.
2026 – After 50 years, Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation now supports care across, Hamilton General Hospital, McMaster Children’s Hospital, Juravinski Hospital and Cancer Centre, McMaster University Children’s Hospital, and St. Peter’s Hospital.
These stories happened because donors chose to give.
Behind every story is a person, a family and a moment that mattered.
In many cases, the care, treatment, equipment or research that changed everything was there because someone chose to give. That is the power of donor-funded philanthropy. Donors invest in care before the diagnosis, before the procedure, before the breakthrough – and make those moments possible for people they may never meet. Read their stories. Then help write the next chapter.
Joan McLaughlin
Meet Joan
“It’s just a place that pulls you in and keeps your heart,” says Joan McLaughlin. For more than 40 years, Joan has carried Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS) in hers.As Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation (HHSF) celebrates its 50th anniversary, Joan’s story reflects the enduring connection many donors share with HHS across all of its hospitals. She made her first gift in 1985 and continues to support the Foundation today, even after moving hours away from Hamilton. Her giving journey spans decades of health care innovation, research and patient care across the region.
Joan’s connection to HHS began in 1978 when she began working in the lipid clinic at Hamilton General Hospital. Over time, HHS became central to both her professional and personal life. All three of her children were born at McMaster Children’s Hospital, and she participated in several research studies as both a health care professional and a mother. When her son was born in 1988 and required care in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), Joan experienced firsthand the skill and compassion of the teams caring for her family. Those experiences strengthened a connection that continues to shape her philanthropy decades later.
Even after working at other major hospitals throughout Ontario, HHS stood apart in her mind. “Hamilton Health Sciences has left a lasting memory on me for being a top-notch hospital in research and in the professional staff,” she says.
Joan says her continued support comes from seeing the impact donor funding has on research, innovation, equipment and patient care. Over her decades of support, she has seen HHS rise to become Canada’s second largest research and teaching hospital. She has seen the NICU that cared for her son become the most specialized in the region. She has seen countless friends and family members receive care that was both compassionate and cutting-edge. She has also included the Foundation in her estate plans as part of her lasting commitment to the organization.
“I’m probably a drop in the bucket,” says Joan, “but at the end of the day, a lot of drops can fill a bucket.” Since 1976, HHSF donors have helped advance health care for patients and families across the region. For Joan, giving has always been a way of supporting a place that helped shape her life, her career and her family. More than 40 years after her first gift, HHS still holds a place in her heart, and her generosity continues to help it thrive.
The next 50 starts now. And it starts with you.
For 50 years, this community has shown up – backing what comes next before outcomes were known and before success was guaranteed. Because of that, care has advanced, research has moved forward and lives have changed. Now, the next chapter is waiting.
Understanding Our 50-Year History
Questions about the next chapter? Everything you need to know about our 50-year journey and how to support what’s ahead.
Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation was established in 1976, before Hamilton Health Sciences became one integrated hospital system in 1996. The Foundation has evolved alongside the health care system, supporting care across multiple hospitals and sites through the generosity of donors.
Since its inception, the Foundation’s accomplishments have been nearly countless and have helped shape the health of a region of 3 million people. For a closer look at just a fraction of that impact, visit the Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation timeline.
In 2026, Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation is celebrating 50 Years of Impact, marking five decades your generosity helping advance patient care, research, education and innovation across Hamilton Health Sciences.
This milestone is an opportunity to recognize the donors, volunteers, staff, physicians and community partners whose support has helped shape health care in our region for the past 50 years – and to look ahead to the impact we can make together in the future.
There are many ways to get involved, including attending signature events, sharing your story or memories, submitting historical photos, supporting the campaign through a donation, or helping spread awareness of the important work being done.
Donations made during the anniversary year will support priority needs across Hamilton Health Sciences, including equipment, research, education, innovation and programs that enhance patient care and outcomes.
Donor generosity has helped fund life-changing equipment, breakthrough research, specialized programs and innovative care spaces that have improved the experiences and outcomes of patients and families across our region.
By making a donation, becoming a monthly supporter, exploring legacy giving opportunities or participating in anniversary initiatives, you can help ensure future generations have access to world-class care and innovation.
Health Sciences Foundation is the charitable organization that raises funds in support of patient care, research, education and innovation across Hamilton Health Sciences, including McMaster Children’s Hospital, Juravinski Hospital and Cancer Centre, St. Peter’s Hospital, and Hamilton General Hospital and the Ron Joyce Children’s Health Centre.