James Dillon has fond memories of Laura Kriz.

“She was probably one of the most delightful ladies I’ve ever met,” said Dillon, a longtime Lawrence accountant. “She always had a smile, was always friendly to everybody. And she had an unbelievable twinkle in her eye.”

Thanks to Kriz, who died in July 1999 at the age of 91, Lawrence Memorial Hospital will be getting a high-tech piece of laser equipment that can be used for a variety of treatments and surgeries.

LMH’s Board of Trustees announced during its regular monthly meeting Wednesday that the LMH Endowment Assn. had received a $65,000 grant from the Kriz Charitable Fund, a private foundation funded by Kriz’s estate.

“We’re honored to be given the privilege of being entrusted with this gift to help the residents of Douglas County. This was totally unexpected, and we are just thrilled,” said Kathy Clausing, the hospital’s vice president and chief development officer.

Clausing is in charge of the LMH Endowment Assn., which is the gift-receiving and distributing entity for the hospital. Its current assets are $3.1 million.

The grant will be used to buy a laser that is designed to break up kidney and bladder stones. The instrument also can be used for other types of surgery.

Kriz specified that grants from the fund should be given particularly to Lawrence-area groups or advocates who serve the needs of the elderly, children and animals.

The new laser technology is intended to benefit the community by increasing the number of surgeries that can be performed at the hospital, LMH officials said.

Kriz retired from a secretarial position in Chicago and moved to Lawrence in 1984 to be near her sister, Libuse “Libby” Kriz-Fiorito.

Kriz had never married and had no children. Kriz-Fiorito was her sole living relative.

Dillon declined Wednesday to reveal the size of the fund. But he said trustees had also made grants this year of $20,000 to the Lawrence Humane Society and $15,000 to Pelathe Inc.