Atlanta Developer Gives Big Gift to Children’s Hospital
Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta announced Monday it has received $1 million from the family of Atlanta developer Herman J. Russell, founder of the H.J. Russell & Company, a real estate and construction firm and the largest minority-owned developer, builder, and property manager in the nation.
The gift will help fund the construction of a four-story pediatric facility at Hughes Spalding Children’s Hospital. The hospital, originally constructed in 1952 as a private facility for African-Americans, launched a $43 million capital campaign this year to construct a facility that can better meet the needs of the community.
“We are proud to support such an important resource for our children and believe every child deserves a nice facility and kid-friendly environment in which to receive health care,” Russell said Monday. “This was our family’s chance to give a lasting gift that will ensure children now – and in the future – are cared for in a proper facility that has a pediatric focus, which is important since we know that children fare better when treated in a child-centered setting.”
The $1 million gift will help raise the $4.8 million in critical capital funds needed by 2010 to complete the facility.
The lobby will be named after Russell and his late wife Otelia, a former school teacher. Their son Michael, who was born at Hughes Spalding, currently serves on the Grady Memorial Hospital Corporation, a 17 member, non-profit board that oversees the daily operations of the Grady Health System, which includes Hughes Spalding.