Greenebaum Give to UMMC

Originally Released: July 26, 1996
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STEWART AND MARLENE GREENEBAUM GIVE $10 MILLION TO MEDICAL CENTER -- LARGEST PRIVATE GIFT EVER MADE TO HOSPITAL OR SCHOOL

Baltimore-based real estate developer Stewart Greenebaum and his wife, Marlene, have made a $10 million gift to the University of Maryland Medical System and the University of Maryland School of Medicine. The largest private contribution ever made to the School or Hospital, the gift recognizes the Medical Center's "extraordinary growth and progress."

The Greenebaums have a long history of personal affiliation with the Medical System. In the 1960s Greenebaum's father was successfully and compassionately treated for an abdominal aneurysm at University Hospital, sowing the seeds for Stewart and Marlene Greenebaum's life- long involvement with the institution.

In 1990, Greenebaum, who is president of the regional real estate development company Greenebaum and Rose Associates, was invited to join the Medical System Board of Directors. He has been chairman since 1994. Marlene Greenebaum is a volunteer at the University of Maryland Cancer Center.

"As chairman, I have been privileged to watch first-hand as this remarkable institution evolved into a state-of-the-art, world-class medical facility, and to see the School of Medicine triple its research funding and become a major force in the advancement of medical science," Greenebaum says. "I am extremely proud to have played even a small part in these tremendous advances. Marlene and I could think of no better place to share the good fortune with which we have been blessed."

In addition to recognizing the Medical System's growth and progress, the Greenebaum gift has a very personal meaning for the couple. Diagnosed with breast cancer in 1991, Marlene Greenebaum has just passed her five-year survival mark -- a critical milestone for cancer patients.

"At the time of my diagnosis, Stewart promised me that we'd do something very significant to celebrate my recovery," she recalls.

Greenebaum surprised both his wife and the Medical System Board of Directors with the $10 million gift, which he pledged exactly five years to the day he first learned of his wife's diagnosis.

"It is a remarkable act, by a remarkable man and a devoted husband," says Morton I. Rapoport, M.D., president and CEO of the Medical System.

"Stewart's leadership has been essential in moving the Medical System through one of the most difficult and challenging times in the long history of this institution -- the growth of managed care, the demands for cost effective services, the consolidation of the health care marketplace and the changing role of medicine. Without a strong Board and an equally strong chairman, the University of Maryland Medical System would not be the great institution it is today. His leadership has been at least as important to our success as the gift we announce today."

Adds Donald E. Wilson, M.D., M.A.C.P., dean of the University of Maryland School of Medicine: "Stewart has always made clear his adamant belief that the School of Medicine and Medical System are irrevocably joined and that only by collaboration will our continued success as a center of excellence be assured. His great generosity is a vote of confidence that our institutions will continue their leadership in education, research and patient care."

In recognition of the record-breaking gift, the Medical System and School of Medicine will name the University of Maryland Cancer Center after the Greenebaums. Dedication of the Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Cancer Center will be scheduled for later this year.

The University of Maryland Cancer Center is a nationally and internationally recognized leader in all areas of cancer treatment and research. It is best known for its contributions to new drug development, clinical studies, and defining immune, hormonal and cellular defects related to cancer. Research is focused on translating discoveries in the lab into actual cancer prevention, treatments and cures. These include new drugs, bone marrow/stem cell transplantation, improved radiation therapy and innovations in surgery.

Stewart and Marlene Greenebaum have worked untiringly among Baltimore's leading civic and community leaders for years, with a continuing interest in philanthropy. In 1994, the Greenebaums started the "Access to Medicine Fund," a program of scholarships for University of Maryland School of Medicine students who are residents of Maryland. Contributions from the Greenebaums and more than 50 of their friends support the fund. Additionally, the Greenebaums have also donated full four-year scholarships for tuition, room and board for two outstanding undergraduates who are known as "Greenebaum" scholars at the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC).

The philanthropic interests of the well-known developer and his wife also extend to other civic endeavors. The Greenebaums were founders in 1991 of the Children's House at Johns Hopkins. They donated $800,000 towards the all new construction of an 18-bedroom facility that provides lodging for families of children being treated for life-threatening illnesses. Stewart spearheaded the drive that ultimately raised almost $2 million in donated building materials and services from more than 100 companies and 3,000 volunteers. Greenebaum is chairman of the Board of the Children's House.

He is also an active board member and volunteer with the Baltimore based Grant-a-Wish Foundation, making dreams come true for hundreds of children with life-threatening diseases. Both Greenebaums are active leaders in the Jewish community. Stewart. Greenebaum is currently chairman of Israel Bonds of Maryland, a board member of The Associated Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore and past president of Temple Oheb Shalom. Marlene Greenebaum is currently president of Temple Oheb Shalom Sisterhood and past president of Miriam Lodge.

But it is their belief in the future of University that is the Greenebaums' abiding passion.

"Today's University of Maryland Medical System is not just a good hospital, it is a great hospital that with the School of Medicine, touches the lives of all Marylanders through its patient care, medical education and research programs," the Greenebaums say.

Notes Rapoport, "Stewart often says we have a responsibility in this world to leave it a better place than when we came into it, and he acts on that belief. By this contribution, the Greenebaums have given something back not just to the Medical System and School of Medicine, but to the residents of Baltimore and the citizens of the state. At the same time the gift from the Greenebaums will serve to enhance the upcoming capital program of the Medical Center."

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