Current Events > Nike co-founder, Phil Knight, & his wife pledge $2B to Oregon cancer center

(+) Yeah! (+)

Nike co-founder Phil Knight and his wife Penny Knight have pledged to donate $2 billion to Oregon Health & Science Universitys Knight Cancer Institute, the school announced Thursday, describing it as the largest single gift to a U.S. university.

This gift is an unprecedented investment in the millions of lives burdened with cancer, especially patients and families here in Oregon, OHSU President Shereef Elnahal said in a statement.

The donation will help ensure patients have access to various resources, including psychological, genetic and financial counseling, symptom management, nutritional support and survivorship care, the university statement said.

We couldnt be more excited about the transformational potential of this work for humanity, the Knights said in the statement.

The university described it as the largest single donation ever made to a U.S. university, college or academic health center. It surpasses the $1.8 billion given by Michael Bloomberg to Johns Hopkins in 2018, described by that university at the time as the largest single contribution to a U.S. university.

Bloomberg also donated an additional $1 billion to Johns Hopkins last year, covering tuition, living expenses and fees for students from families under certain income levels.

The magnitude of the donation will allow the Knight Cancer Institute to become a self-governed entity with its own board of directors within OHSU, the university said.

Knight, Oregons richest man, donated $500 million to the cancer institute in 2013 on the condition the gift be matched within two years.

Universities across the country are struggling with moves from President Donald Trump's administration to cancel or freeze research grants at universities.

https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/nike-founder-phil-knight-wife-pledge-record-2b-124660347

Nice tax write off.

That'll be a nice stopgap for a year to cover all the grants that aren't funded anymore because of RFK Jr.

But if they really wanted to help cancer patients, maybe some of that donation could have gone to stopping fascism.

Crimson_Corsair posted...

Nice tax write off.

DnDer posted...

That'll be a nice stopgap for a year to cover all the grants that aren't funded anymore because of RFK Jr.

But if they really wanted to help cancer patients, maybe some of that donation could have gone to stopping fascism.

True. Still good on them and hopefully they can address that too.

That was nice of Ben Affleck.

It's an Air reference. No one watched that movie, that's why it's funny.

Crimson_Corsair posted...

Nice tax write off.

Getting a tax write off for donating to a center you own while getting a positive story out of it is rich people chess.

Man, damn if you do and damn if you don't. Cant ever win with some people

DnDer posted...

That'll be a nice stopgap for a year to cover all the grants that aren't funded anymore because of RFK Jr.

But if they really wanted to help cancer patients, maybe some of that donation could have gone to stopping fascism.

That would only help that university though.

VeggetaX posted...

Man, damn if you do and damn if you don't. Cant ever win with some people

Yeah, lots of billionaires don't at all.