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Briefly: Portland philanthropist gives Legacy's Good Samaritan $5 million

Hank Swigert, a Portland philanthropist and former chairman of ESCO Corp. did not attach any strings to the gift, a record for Good Sam's foundation.
Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center is located in Northwest Portland. | LEGACY HEALTH
July 23, 2018

A philanthropist has awarded Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center in Northwest Portland $5 million.

Henry "Hank" Swigert, the former chairman of ESCO. Corp., a mining and industrial company, donated the money -- with no strings attached.

"Hank's generosity is truly inspiring," Kathryn Correia, president and chief executive of Legacy Health, said in a statement. "His gift will support the expert care provided each day at Legacy Good Samaritan. We are so fortunate to have donors like Hank who share our commitment to improving the health of our communities."

This is the largest unrestricted gift ever to the Good Samaritan Foundation, which supports the hospital. It can be used for any of Legacy Good Samaritan's programs or priorities.

This is not the first donation to Legacy by the Swigerts, who've been treated for generations by Legacy Good Samaritan. Over decades, the Swigert Foundation has donated to the hospital. In one of its latest gifts, it contributed to the Unity Center for Behavioral Health, a mental health crisis center that receives patients 24 hours a day in Northeast Portland. The center opened in 2016.  Hank Swigert has also donated to the Ernest G. Swigert Distinguished Chair of Medicine Endowment, a position established at Legacy in 1979 by his father. Dr. Jennifer LeTourneau, an osteopath, is currently in the position.

Legacy leaders said the $5 million will help transform the hospital by bolstering services, buildings and staff.

 

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