MIAMI, Feb 17, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) —
Accelerating its longstanding commitment to cure diabetes, the Diabetes
Research Institute Foundation is making the lead gift of $100 million to Momentum2:
The Breakthrough Campaign for the University of Miami. The goal of
the University’s Momentum2 Campaign, announced February 16, is to
raise $1.6 billion by 2016. The campaign will build on the resounding
success of Momentum: The Campaign for the University of Miami,
which raised a historic $1.4 billion by the time it concluded in 2007.
“As one of the University’s longest supporters, the Foundation has had a
unique partnership with the UM Miller School of Medicine,” says Robert
A. Pearlman, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Diabetes
Research Institute Foundation. “We see Momentum2 as an
opportunity to significantly increase our funding for the cure-focused
research going on at the Diabetes Research Institute and put an end to
this devastating disease that affects millions of children and adults
across the globe.”
UM President Donna E. Shalala says, “The DRIF’s lead gift is momentous.
The University demonstrated in our first campaign that we are committed
to establishing a world-class institution. The Miller School of Medicine
and the Diabetes Research Institute are key to that goal.”
The Diabetes Research Institute has become a world leader in
cure-focused research, achieving groundbreaking strides that have been
made possible in great part by the DRIF’s leadership and countless
contributors. Supported by private philanthropy, the Foundation is the
single largest donor in the University’s history, having provided more
than $225 million to date for translational research at the DRI.
“It is impossible to overstate just how critical the DRIF’s support has
been to us,” says Pascal J. Goldschmidt, M.D., Senior Vice President for
Medical Affairs and Dean of the Miller School. “Because of their
consistent funding, we have been able to make extraordinary discoveries
toward a cure for type 1 diabetes and translate our findings in the lab
to patients in the safest and most efficient way possible.”
The Miller School of Medicine’s focus on research has been dramatic,
helping it climb 12 spots in the past five years to No. 39 in National
Institutes of Health funding.
UM Trustee Stuart Miller, Chairman of the Miller School’s Momentum2
campaign, says he’s proud that the lead gift for the University is
coming from the DRIF. “This speaks to the impact the Diabetes Research
Institute Foundation and the Miller School of Medicine have when it
comes to improving and saving human lives. Momentum2 will enable
us to make that difference.”
The Momentum2 campaign seeks to advance learning and enhance the
lives of UM students who come from all corners of the world to study,
conduct research and improve their community. Funding is especially
critical and life-changing at the University’s Miller School of
Medicine. That’s where the campaign will work toward recruiting
top-notch faculty, driving collaborative research and then propelling
those discoveries to patients in South Florida and beyond.
The vision to create a multidisciplinary center focused on curing
diabetes was conceived by Daniel H. Mintz, M.D., DRI’s founding
scientific director, who bridged the unique partnership between the
University and the Foundation. Building upon this early vision, the
DRI’s extraordinary discoveries over the past two decades have come
under the leadership of Camillo Ricordi, M.D., scientific director of
the Diabetes Research Institute and a pioneer in islet cell
transplantation, a cell-replacement therapy which has restored natural
insulin production in study patients, some of whom have been living
insulin-free for more than a decade.
“The steadfast and dedicated support of the DRIF has allowed our
researchers to pursue innovative cell-based therapies aimed at curing
this disease,” Ricordi says. “This latest gift is nothing short of
extraordinary and inspires all of us to work harder to reach our common
goal in the shortest time and most efficient way possible.”
The Diabetes Research Institute Foundation is one of the world’s most
respected diabetes organizations and attracts the support of those who
are serious, passionate and committed to curing this disease. The DRIF
was founded in 1971 by a small group of parents who shared a dedication
to finding a cure for their children with diabetes. That one goal – a
cure – has been and will continue to be its singular focus until that
goal is reached.
Pearlman says the lead gift will ensure that Momentum2 is a
success and serves as a challenge to other donors to join them in saving
lives through the medical research going on at the Miller School of
Medicine.
About the Diabetes Research Institute Foundation
The Diabetes Research Institute Foundation (DRIF) is the organization of
choice for those who are serious, passionate and committed to curing
diabetes. Its mission — to provide the Diabetes Research Institute with
the funding necessary to cure diabetes now — is a testament to
the belief that tomorrow is not soon enough to cure those living with
diabetes.
A 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation, the Diabetes Research Institute
Foundation was created for one reason — to cure diabetes — which is and
will continue to be its singular focus until that goal is reached. For
the millions of individuals and families affected by diabetes, the
Diabetes Research Institute Foundation is the best hope for a cure.
For more information, call 1-800-321-3437 or visit DiabetesResearch.org.
About Momentum2: The Breakthrough Campaign for
the University of Miami
Momentum2: The Breakthrough Campaign for the University of Miami
seeks to advance learning, elevate scholarship, and make bold strides in
healthcare in the community, across the country, and around the world. Momentum2
comes on the heels of the institution’s record-breaking Momentum
campaign, which concluded at the end of 2007 and raised more than $1.4
billion for endowed chairs and professorships, scholarships, facilities,
academic and medical programs, and other initiatives.
www.miami.edu/momentum2
Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available:
http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=50172317lang=en
SOURCE: University of Miami
Diabetes Research Institute Foundation
Lauren Schreier, 954-964-4040
LSchreier@drif.org
or
University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
Lisa Worley, 305-243-5184/305-458-9654
LWorley2@med.miami.edu
Copyright Business Wire 2012
