FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WINNIPEG – June 17, 2024
Local philanthropist and business leader Miriam Bergen has made the largest-ever gift to St. Boniface Hospital Foundation, the Foundation announced today. Bergen, who died in January of 2022, left the $10 million bequest in her estate. Half of the gift will go to the Hospital’s new Emergency Department and half to St. B’s Cardiac Sciences Program.
Doris Gietz, Bergen’s younger cousin on her maternal side and one of three executors of the estate, imagined how Bergen would have explained her generosity.
“Miriam would say, ‘I was raised in a family where it was important to give back to the community. I am happy to continue what my parents demonstrated to me all my life,’” said Gietz. “She would say, ‘This is just what we Bergens do.’”
Bergen was the owner and president of Appleton Holdings Ltd., a development company that owns and manages several large residential buildings in Winnipeg. She carried on her family’s commitment to philanthropy, often in her parents’ memory.
Karen Fowler, St. Boniface Hospital Foundation President and CEO, was humbled and honoured when she learned about the donation.
“I will never forget the moment we learned about Miriam’s incredible gift. It was November 15 – National Philanthropy Day in Canada – when the estate executors called us with the news. I was left in awe and wonder that Miriam thought so highly of St. B and her relationship with the Hospital that she would leave a gift of that magnitude. Miriam bestowed her trust in our Foundation to steward not only this remarkable donation, but also her family legacy. We are honoured to be given the responsibility for seeing her vision through.”
St. Boniface Hospital President and CEO Nicole Aminot called Bergen’s gift transformational.
“Words are not adequate to express what this gift means to our patients and our front-line heroes,” said Aminot. “St. Boniface Hospital is so very thankful to Miriam. We will make Miriam and her family proud.”
Quiet philanthropist can now be recognized
While it came as a surprise, the $10 million bequest was not at all out of character for Bergen, who quietly supported a number of high-impact projects at the Hospital over her lifetime.
Dr. Anita Soni, Cardiac Sciences Medical Specialty Lead at St. Boniface Hospital, said she and her colleagues in the Cardiac Sciences Program are profoundly grateful to the Bergen family for their longstanding generosity.
“Miriam was known as a quiet philanthropist. I hope she knew her support would be used directly for the improvement of front-line patient care,” said Soni. “Miriam and her family’s dedication to the Cardiac Sciences Program continues to have a profound impact on the lives of Manitobans who require specialized cardiac services.”
The donation is the capstone to the Bergen family’s legacy at St. Boniface Hospital. It followed the example set by her parents Martin and Ruth Bergen, who made a $3 million gift to the Hospital nearly 20 years ago to create the Bergen Cardiac Care Centre at St. Boniface Hospital in 2006.
Although Bergen shunned the spotlight, Gietz and her fellow executors wanted to recognize Bergen’s visionary philanthropy.
“Miriam very rarely wanted any sort of recognition for what she gave,” said Gietz. “We all knew that Miriam was very private. I think it came down to myself and the other executors feeling that now it was time to recognize her. She had mentioned to me that she didn’t want the Bergen family legacy to be forgotten after she was gone,” said Gietz.
“So, the way for us to do that was to go beyond anonymous donations and make the community truly aware of just how generous the Bergen family was.”
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Media Inquiries, contact:
Lisa Thomson Stifora
Director of Communications & Stewardship
St. Boniface Hospital Foundation
Ph: 204-770-3210
[email protected]
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About St. Boniface Hospital Foundation
St. Boniface Hospital Foundation was founded in 1971 and is the primary fundraising organization for St. Boniface Hospital. The Foundation is dedicated to making possible the many innovations in health research and patient care taking place at the Hospital. St. Boniface Hospital is a leader in patient care excellence, delivered with genuine compassion. Research at St. Boniface Hospital is where medical discoveries are made; science is translated into practices that improve human health; and today’s best minds are shaping tomorrow’s advances in health care. For more information, visit bealifeline.ca.