Contact: Ellen Bank
843.792.2626
Sept. 22, 2000
CHARLESTON, SC -- A $1 million contribution from Edwin Pearlstine of Charleston will be used to fund a healing garden at the Hollings Cancer Center of the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC).
The garden, which will be named in memory of Pearlstine's late wife, Barbara Pearlstine, will be the centerpiece of the expanded Hollings Cancer Center facility. This will be located behind the existing building in the old quadrangle area of the MUSC campus. Construction is expected to begin in August 2001.
"We are extremely grateful to Mr. Pearlstine for his generous contribution that will mean so much to our patients, their families and their caregivers," said Carolyn Reed, M.D., director of the Hollings Cancer Center.
Pearlstine, the retired founder and CEO of Pearlstine Distributors Inc., a distributor for Anheuser Busch and other malt beverage products, said, "I hope my contribution will inspire other members of the Charleston community to search their hearts and do something meaningful for the community and themselves through philanthropy. Most importantly, I pay special tribute to Barbara, an extraordinary woman, who gave so much of herself to the community she loved."
Many of the nation's premier cancer centers have garden areas that provide a soothing, quiet atmosphere outside the confines of the treatment area where patients, family and staff can relax and reflect. The new facility is being planned so that the chemotherapy area * where patients frequently spend many hours receiving treatment * overlooks the garden.
"In expanding our cancer center, one of the main goals is to provide a facility that is patient oriented," said Reed. "Our patients are frequently under a great deal of stress, and we want to make them as comfortable as possible. This garden will have an extremely soothing effect which I believe will be therapeutic for our patients"
#####