Century Club Charities, host organization for the Sanderson Farms Championship, presented a $1.25 million gift to Friends of Children’s Hospital on Thursday, January 10. Also during the event, Century Club Charities presented a second gift to FOCH for $125,000, with $100,000 through Mac Elliot in memory of Sidney Allen, Sr., former Board Chairman of Friends of Children’s Hospital, and $25,000 in other designated donations.
“Century Club Charities, in 2018, presented a $100,000 check to Friends of Children’s Hospital from the North Mississippi Classic; and for the second year in a row Carl and Gigi Allen with Allen Exploration, donated a second gift of $500,000 to the hospital, and finally a number of smaller gifts totaling $260,000 were given to 40 additional Mississippi charities,” shared Jeff Hubbard, Century Club Charities president. “These gifts, combined with the two checks today, make Century Club’s total charitable impact a grand total of $2,235,000 in 2018 alone.”
This year’s gift is earmarked for Friends’ contribution to the Campaign for Children’s of Mississippi, a philanthropic effort that is helping fund construction of a seven-story, 355,303-square-foot pediatric tower adjacent to Batson Children’s Hospital.
Ground was broken on the project December 1, 2017, and the tower, in its structural phase, is now more than 25 percent complete. Patients are expected to be receiving expert care in the expansion by fall 2020.
The tower will be home to 88 private neonatal intensive care unit rooms, 10 additional operating rooms, more pediatric intensive care unit space, a pediatric imaging center, an outpatient clinic, and a new lobby. The Children’s Heart Center, representing the Medical Center’s pediatric cardiovascular program, will also call the new building home.
Friends of Children’s Hospital Chairman of the Board, Melanie Morgan, thanked Century Club Charities for their continued support through the tournament.
“This incredibly generous contribution will be directed toward Friends of Children’s Hospital’s $20 million pledge to fund this pediatric expansion,” Morgan said. “Friends helped fund the construction of Batson Children’s Hospital, and we are excited to build upon that legacy with this gift.”
Dr. LouAnn Woodward, vice chancellor for health affairs and dean of the School of Medicine at UMMC, said, “Our new children’s tower will match the incredible skills of our physicians and staff with the surroundings and technology needed to offer our children the best care close to home. UMMC’s missions of educating the next generation of health science professionals and innovation through research will be strengthened by this project, which will also attract more pediatric specialists to the state. This expansion will be truly transformational.”
Children’s of Mississippi leaders anticipate recruiting 30-40 new physicians in the next five years as the new pediatric tower is built and after it is opened, since it will provide additional capacity. At a minimum, about 50-75 staff positions, not including physicians, would be added after construction.
Guy Giesecke, CEO of Children’s of Mississippi, said the partnership between Century Club Charities and Friends of Children’s Hospital is resulting in improvements in pediatrics at UMMC. “We are so grateful for the tremendous contributions which have come as a result of the success of the Sanderson Farms Championship. This relationship is resulting in better pediatric care that’s close to home for the families of this state.”
Yesterday’s announcement, made to a standing-room-only audience at the Norman C. Nelson Student Union at UMMC, was the culmination of a year of hard work, said Joe F. Sanderson Jr., CEO and Chairman of the Board of Sanderson Farms. “We work 12 months to get to that eight days of the Sanderson Farms Championship,” he said, “and all of that is about today and for the next 40 years. It’s about this new pediatric expansion and the physicians, nurses, families and children who will be cared for there.”
“There are so many people that make a day like today happen. Golf is an individual sport, one guy wins, but he has a huge team behind him just as we have a huge team who puts this tournament together,” added Sanderson Farms Championship Executive Director Steve Jent. “It is because of our team – the people, volunteers, and community support that an event of this magnitude has become such a success. It’s exciting to see the impact we are making in our community.”
The Sanderson Farms Championship is an annual stop on the PGA TOUR hosted by Century Club Charities, a non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization whose mission is to promote the game of golf for the benefit of charity. The tournament’s primary beneficiary is Friends of Children’s Hospital. The tournament has been part of the PGA TOUR schedule since 1968 and is now in its ninth year as a part of the FedExCup. Sanderson Farms (NASDAQ:SAFM), the nation’s third largest poultry producer based in Laurel, Miss., is the title sponsor.
Century Club Charities is a not-for-profit, tax-exempt 501(c) 3 organization whose mission is to promote the game of golf for the benefit of Mississippi charities. Since 1994, Century Club Charities has served as the host organization for Mississippi’s PGA TOUR event, helping to raise over $14.75 million for statewide charities.
Sanderson Farms, Inc., founded in 1947, is engaged in the production, processing, marketing and distribution of fresh and frozen chicken and other prepared food items. Employing more than 15,000 employees in operations spanning five states and 17 different cities, Sanderson Farms is the third largest poultry producer in the United States. As a company, Sanderson Farms is committed to adopting a fresh approach in everything they do, not only where products are concerned, but company-wide as well. Though the company has grown in size, it still adheres to the same hometown values of honesty, integrity, and innovation that was established when the Sanderson family founded the company in 1947.
Supporting Mississippi’s only Children’s Hospital, Friends of Children’s Hospital is a nonprofit organization benefiting Batson Children’s Hospital, part of Children’s of Mississippi. Founded in 1989, Friends works to support and promote Mississippi’s only hospital designed and equipped specifically for the care and treatment of sick or injured children. Their goal is to raise money for state-of-the-art equipment, facilities and services for all pediatric patients by building a statewide base of community support. Voluntarism, fundraising events and awareness efforts make it possible for Friends to help Batson Children’s Hospital meet the EXTRAordinary needs of caring for its patients. Want to become a member of Friends? Interested in volunteering or donating to help the kids? Find out how by visiting FOCH.org for more information.
Children’s of Mississippi, part of the University of Mississippi Medical Center, encompasses all the pediatric services available at UMMC and at clinical sites throughout Mississippi. At the heart of these services is Batson Children’s Hospital, the state’s only hospital devoted exclusively to the care and treatment of sick and injured children. The Children’s of Mississippi network brings specialized clinical care for children to communities across the state, making it easier for families to get the treatment they need closer to home.
A campus of the University of Mississippi, UMMC is the state’s only academic medical center. Located in Jackson, it encompasses six health science schools, including medicine, nursing, health related professions, dentistry, pharmacy and graduate studies. The Medical Center’s health-care enterprise includes the state’s only level one trauma center and its only children’s hospital. UMMC’s education, research and health-care missions share the objectives of improving the health of the state’s population and eliminating health disparities. For more information, visit http://www.umc.edu.
