Baptist Health announced Thursday that philanthropists J. Wayne and Delores Barr Weaver have made a $10 million gift, the largest in its 57-year history.
Baptist Health will name the new patient tower at its Jacksonville campus, which begins serving patients in December, as the J. Wayne and Delores Barr Weaver Tower.
The tower will allow Baptist to expand services offered by Baptist Medical Center Jacksonville and Wolfson Children’s Hospital within the same structure.
Jacksonville-based Baptist Health said the Weavers’ donation will be put into the health system’s endowment to generate perpetual funding for programs in pediatric and adolescent behavioral health.
“The gift continues a powerful partnership that the Weavers established with Baptist Health shortly after they moved to Jacksonville,” said a news release from Baptist Health.
The health system said the Weavers have supported numerous programs at Wolfson Children’s Hospital and Baptist Medical Center Jacksonville.
“Mr. and Mrs. Weaver have a unique place in the history of Baptist Health and in our community,” said Hugh Greene, president and CEO of Baptist Health, in a statement.
“The Weavers’ philanthropy has transformed so many lives here at Baptist Health and throughout the region,” he said.
In a statement, the Weavers said Baptist Health has been one of their strategic partners “from the moment we arrived in Jacksonville.”
“With this gift, we are forming another strategic partnership, which we are certain will strengthen services for children and young adults who are battling behavioral health conditions,” they said in the statement.
“We are also hopeful it will launch advocacy efforts to remove the stigma from these conditions so they are looked upon in the same way as any other treatable illness,” they said.
The Weavers brought the Jacksonville Jaguars to Jacksonville. The Jaguars were announced in 1993 and began playing in 1995.
The Weavers and other Jaguars partners sold the NFL franchise in January to businessman Shad Khan for a reported $770 million.
“We will be forever mindful of the Weavers’ generosity and their lasting impact on our city and our community,” Greene said in a statement.
Baptist Health comprises Baptist Medical Center Jacksonville and Baptist Heart Hospital; Baptist Medical Center Beaches; Baptist Medical Center Nassau; Baptist Medical Center South; and Wolfson Children’s Hospital, which is Jacksonville’s only children’s hospital.
Baptist Health also includes cardiology and cardiovascular surgery services; a cancer center; orthopedic institute; women’s resource center; neurosciences, including neurosurgery and two stroke centers; psychology and psychiatry services; outpatient facilities; urgent care services; and a network of primary care physicians’ offices throughout Northeast Florida.
Baptist Health is the official health care provider for the Jaguars.