December 4, 2008/- The Derbyshire family, of Kingston’s west-end Canadian Tire Store, Clermont Venture Corporation, Wolfe Springs Golf & Waterfront Resort, and Rogers & Trainor Commercial Realty pledged $100,000 to the hospitals’ Together We Can fundraising campaign at a ceremony today at Kingston General Hospital.

The Derbyshire family – Elwin, Beverley, Matthew and Jason Derbyshire and Dana McCulloch – are directing their gift to the new pediatric inpatient unit at KGH in memory of Jake and Jordan McCulloch, born two years apart at KGH, both with the same rare and fatal condition.

“I am deeply touched by the generosity of the Derbyshire family,” said Ian Wilson, Chair of the Together We Can campaign. “This is a special gift because it comes from their personal experience and desire to help other families. Each year, more than 1,300 children are admitted to the pediatric inpatient unit, so I know the Derbyshire’s gift will help many families receive exceptional care in the very best care environment.”

“Our family lived through a very difficult experience saying goodbye to Jake and Jordan,” said Dana McCulloch. “We spent months in the inpatient pediatric unit at KGH, and while the specialists and nurses who looked after our infant sons couldn’t have been more caring – we found that the physical space in the pediatric unit wasn’t all that family friendly. This is our way of giving back to the community and helping other families with sick children.”

The gift, pledged over five years, will support the new pediatric inpatient unit, which is being built on top of the Kidd Wing. Designed to accommodate family-focused, patient-centred care, the new pediatric inpatient unit will include private rooms, a large playroom, family waiting room and six designated pediatric intensive care and enhanced care beds to help ensure critically ill children do not have to be sent out of our region for care when the expertise is already in Kingston.