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COMMUNITY
BETTY’S LEGACY
Betty Believed Research Would One
Day Find a Cure for Mental Illness:
In appreciation for the care that Betty
received at St. Joe’s, she made a gift in her
Will in 2006. In an article in St. Joseph’s
Healthcare Foundation’s Annual Report
from that year, Betty explained how
she wanted her gift to be used. “I want
my bequest to support mental health
research,” she said. “Clinical depression
is a physical condition and we still have
so much to learn about the function of
the brain. I firmly believe it may not be in
your lifetime, nor in mine, but they will
find a cure for it. It means that someone
will have the chance to live a life without
pain.” In April 2013, Betty passed away
peacefully surrounded by her family and
friends. Since that time, her estate gift
has been realized and will be supporting
one of the many mental health research
projects and studies currently underway
at St. Joe’s.
Her legacy gift is helping to make
that happen at St. Joe’s
At the tender age of 11 years old,
Betty already knew she was different
from her childhood friends. She
was experiencing periods of sadness,
depression, and feelings of isolation.
But in 1935, so very little was
known about mental illness and even
less about children living with the
condition. In later years as an adult,
Betty frequently heard the refrain “But
what do you have to be so depressed
about?” from people in her life who
still did not seem to understand the
debilitating effects of mental illness.
It wasn’t until Betty was into her
70’s that she discovered life-changing
care at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton. After she was
diagnosed at the hospital’s Mood Disorders Clinic, Betty
began a medication that transformed her world. In her own
words Betty described the experience, “I still remember after
starting the medication, about 5 weeks later, I woke up one
morning and it was like a miracle. I thought – this is the
way life is supposed to be. The people at St. Joseph’s gave me
back my life.”
To honour Betty’s generosity and express gratitude, a plaque
with Betty’s name has been placed in the LiUNA Seniors
Mental Health Outpatient Clinic inside the new Margaret
& Charles Juravinski Centre for Integrated Healthcare on
St. Joseph’s West 5th campus. For more information on how
you can support leading mental health and addictions care and
research visit www.stjoesfoundation.ca or contact Lisa at St.
Joseph’s Healthcare Foundation at 905-522-1155 ext. 35978•
Fiona Hill
Downsizing
Downsizing, decluttering and move management for:
Seniors moving to a smaller home/residence
Family involved in a senior’s move or estate
Executors & Powers-of-Attorney
Executive transfers
905.330.4522
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