Children’s Hospital Named for Nicklaus Family

MIAMI — Miami Children’s Health System has teamed with the Nicklaus Children’s Health Foundation to build the hospital’s Advanced Pediatric Care Pavilion, and will change the name of the main hospital to the Nicklaus Children’s Hospital. Jack Nicklaus, professional golfer and philanthropist, together with his wife Barbara Nicklaus, launched the Nicklaus Children’s Health Foundation in 2004, and have just announced its $60 million pledge to the Miami Children’s Health System.
Part of the money will be used to build the 212,000-square-foot Advanced Pediatric Care Pavilion, which has already started construction. The Nicklaus Children’s Hospital is a 289-bed private hospital and the flagship of a network that has eight outpatient centers. Those centers, part of the Miami Children’s Health System, also will bear the Nicklaus name.
Although the foundation has been active since 2004, they really started working closely with Miami Children’s Health System in 2010. The Nicklaus’ have a passion for supporting children, with five children of their own and 22 grandchildren.
“The health and well-being of children have always been a primary focus for us,” said Jack and Barbara Nicklaus, in a statement. “Miami Children’s Hospital has been a wonderful partner. Our collaboration [with the Miami Children’s Health System] in serving children in Palm Beach County has led us to seek additional opportunities to make a difference. We are proud and incredibly humbled by the decision to place our family name on the hospital.”
Along with supporting children in Miami, the Nicklaus Children’s Health Foundation has helped children and organizations throughout the country. In May 2014, the foundation announced a collaborative program to benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and the foundation by committing a minimum donation of $1 to St. Jude and $1 to the foundation for every dozen Nicklaus golf balls sold. It is estimated that there are more than 20 million golf balls sold each year in the United States.