Site icon The Boca Raton Tribune

Philanthropist Baldwin makes $7.5M gift to Boca Regional Hospital

By Dale King

The Boca Raton philanthropist who gifted Florida Atlantic University with the lead funding to build an on-campus residence for the school’s president has just made her second seven-figure gift to Boca Raton Regional Hospital’s “Keeping the Promise” campaign, bringing her overall donation to $7.5 million.

Eleanor R. Baldwin joins a list of Boca Raton’s philanthropic “Who’s Who” of seven- and eight-figure contributors to the campaign who have helped raise more than $193 million to date.

“There is no way to characterize the level of gratitude we feel for Eleanor,” said Lincoln Mendez, CEO at Boca Regional Hospital. “She is another long-tenured member of our family at Boca Raton Regional Hospital.” 

He said her contribution to the hospital’s major capital campaign “will have a significant impact on our future and mission.”

Her donation, a combination of cash and a planned gift, will be recognized by naming the bistro in the new Gloria Drummond Patient Tower in her honor. Her name will also be placed on the new parking facility to be located across Meadows Road adjacent to the future Toby and Leon Cooperman Pavilion. 

“It should be important to all of us in Boca Raton and the surrounding communities to have the best, most sophisticated care we could possibly have,” Eleanor Baldwin said at the time of her donation. “I trust our leadership implicitly as they chart our path for the future of medicine in our area.” 

“Eleanor doesn’t simply make gifts to organizations, she is acutely aware of the services she is supporting and how they will be enhanced by her commitment,” said Stan Barry, co-chair of Keeping the Promise. “She is certainly not a passive donor, as we know from her history here with us at Boca Regional, and a myriad of other organizations she holds in high esteem. She is a treasure, and we heartily thank her for her generosity and efforts.” 

Baldwin is a retired educator, having taught for 34 years, mostly in Broward County high schools. She was a supervisor of student teachers at FAU in Boca and is president of the Baldwin Family Foundation. 

Elected to the Board of Trustees of Northwestern University in 1995, she served until 2003. She is currently a member of the Medical Affairs Committee of the Northwestern Board of Trustees and is a Northwestern Alumni Regent Emeritus for South Florida. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Smith College and a Master of Arts in teaching degree from Northwestern. 

FAU built a combination on-campus residence and reception center in the early 2000s to emphasize the move from a commuter school to a campus-centered university. The home is located at the 20th Street entrance to the Boca Raton campus.

Former FAU President Frank Brogan and his family was the first university head to live in the dwelling.

The hospital’s $250 million “Keeping the Promise” campaign is the largest financial drive in its history, supporting an ambitious amount of growth and expansion.

Redevelopment plans include the new Gloria Drummond Patient Tower where patients will be welcomed in the new Louis B. and Anne W. Green Lobby, which includes plans for retail, dining, meeting space, a sanctuary, outdoor courtyards and other conveniences for visitors. 

The new tower features all new surgical suites with all private patient rooms exceeding the latest safety standards for patient care. In the current hospital building, all existing rooms will be converted to private in a comprehensive renovation of all patient units including maternity, oncology and orthopedics. 

An expansion of the Marcus Neuroscience Institute is well underway with emphasis on neurovascular/stroke, central nervous system tumors, spine, and epilepsy/seizure disorders. 

The recently opened 972-car Schmidt Family Parking Facility will be connected to the Marcus Neuroscience Institute once the new tower construction is complete. 

Also included in the plans is the new Toby and Leon Cooperman Pavilion, to be located across the street from the medical campus with an outpatient surgery center, physician offices and adjacent parking. 

Boca Raton Regional Hospital is part of Baptist Health South Florida, the largest healthcare organization in the region, with 11 hospitals, nearly 23,000 employees, more than 4,000 physicians and more than 100 outpatient centers, urgent care facilities and physician practices spanning Miami-Dade, Monroe, Broward and Palm Beach counties. 

Exit mobile version