Legacy Projects
The Stollerys' vibrant legacy includes:
Stollery Children's Hospital (Edmonton) The Stollery Children's Hospital was made possible through the generosity of Bob and Shirley Stollery. In the late 1980s and 1990s Bob met with concerned Edmontonians and pediatricians interested in improving children's health care in our region. They felt it was time to bring a children's hospital to Edmonton. The Stollerys promised to provide significant funding if such a hospital could be built. Giving well beyond a financial commitment, the Stollery family takes an active interest in the remarkable medical discoveries and improvements that contribute to the care of seriously ill children. This outstanding 'hospital within a hospital' operates as a separate facility in the Walter C. Mackenzie Health Sciences Centre in Edmonton. The Stollery Children's Hospital The Stollery Charitable Foundation In 1994, Bob and Shirley Stollery established The Stollery Charitable Foundation, a private family charity. The Foundation provides funds each year to registered charities in the greater Edmonton area and in Kamloops, B.C. Since 1994, The Stollery Charitable Foundation has made hundreds of grants, including leadership grants to the Stollery Children's Hospital Foundation, Families First Edmonton, Nina Haggerty Centre for the Arts, the University of Alberta Human Rights Lectureship Series, funding for affordable housing initiatives, bursaries to educational institutions, and funding for hospitals in Edmonton and Kamloops. The Foundation is proud to work with emerging charities, often providing early support that leads to future sustainability. Bob and Shirley Stollery were always mindful of stepping forward early and frequently, and the Foundation has a well-deserved reputation for being the first funder to come forward with a financial commitment. This sense of initiative has often allowed charities to attract other donors to projects that might otherwise pass unnoticed. The Stollerys' vision for an improved community and their commitment to give back to others are realized through the legacy of the Stollery Charitable Foundation. Their personal contributions of time, resources, and experience, along with financial gifts and prudent investments, continue to provide benefits felt in both Edmonton and Kamloops. The Stollery Charitable Foundation was the recipient of the Philanthropy Day award for Outstanding Foundation in 2004. Edmonton Community Foundation The Edmonton Community Foundation is proud of its long-time association with Bob Stollery. The Foundation's current role and its position in the community today is due in large part to Bob's commitment to public service, his vision in understanding the power of endowment, and his desire to create a legacy of caring that will live on long after today's bricks-and-mortar projects are gone. In 1989, following months of discussion and planning, the Edmonton Community Foundation was revitalized when three Edmonton families - John and Barbara Poole, George and Rae Poole, and Bob and Shirley Stollery - each contributed $5 million of endowment support for charitable agencies and causes. It is significant to note that each family determined at that time that half of the original gift could be used to create discretionary funds, allowing the Foundation to respond to emerging and priority needs in the community right from the start of its operation. Bob Stollery served as president of the Edmonton Community Foundation for many years and his presence at the Foundation continued beyond his initial financial investment. Up until his passing, he continued to contribute his expertise, wisdom, and support. Today the Edmonton Community Foundation has assets of over $400 million and distributes millions of dollars each year to registered charities in the greater Edmonton area. More than the value of the initial Stollery gift has been distributed in Edmonton from the Stollery Fund in the years since the endowment was established and the endowment has grown and continues to provide ongoing vital support. The vision of the founding families has allowed others to come forward to ensure that the amounts of those original gifts have been distributed many times since the Foundation's inception. "To say that Bob Stollery was a man of vision is not to say nearly enough. In addition to large vision, he took strong action - at times in the face of considerable opposition - to champion the needs of marginalized Edmontonians. Even when the cause was unpopular, he put his heart and voice and resources towards making substantial improvements," says Martin Garber-Conrad, CEO of the Edmonton Community Foundation. Edmonton Community Foundation Stollery Executive Development Centre (University of Alberta School of Business) Bob's professional and personal commitment to the University of Alberta led to the establishment of the Stollery Executive Development Centre. The Centre welcomes the School of Business, the University of Alberta campus departments, and external groups to use the facility year round. The financial gift that established the Centre was made in honour of the pioneer Stollery family who came from Suffolk, England in 1906 to settle in Strathcona, Alberta. "Their integrity laid foundations that have endured." In 1999, the expansion of the Stollery Executive Development Centre was made possible by another gift from Bob and Shirley Stollery and other generous benefactors to the School of Business. Stollery Executive Development Centre (University of Alberta School of Business) |