In an auditorium on the campus of Kansas University Medical Center, a plaque shows how much money the Kansas Masonic Foundation has donated to the KU Cancer Center.
That plaque now needs an update. At an event Wednesday morning, the masons announced a new $2 million endowed professorship for the cancer center's cancer prevention research area.
All told, the masons will have given $15.2 million to KU since committing to a five-year, $15 million campaign for cancer research.
"One of the things pointed out in our recent cancer advisory board review was we have a great cancer prevention program, but we need more depth," cancer center director Roy Jensen said. "This endowed chair will help us attract an associate director for the cancer prevention program."
KU is in the middle of a long-term effort to enhance its research program to the point where it can be designated a National Cancer Institute.
The gift, by Bette Morris and her family, will also create a position that is eligible for the distinguished professor program, which would allow for matching state dollars. The gift is in honor of Morris' husband, Mark.
Jeff Sowder, president of the Kansas Masonic Foundation, said it was appropriate that the gift will be endowed and allowed to benefit Kansans for the long run.
"It was Mark's sincere belief that the greatest gift you can give is to grow an organization's endowment and let others do the work over the long run," Sowder said.
Sowder called this gift the capstone of the five-year campaign to beef up funding available for cancer research at the medical center.
"There were a lot of people who told us this campaign probably would never be completed," Sowder said.
Med Center Executive Vice Chancellor Barbara Atkinson said the masons' campaign was what ultimately enabled her to bring Jensen back to KU to run the cancer center.
"We had a lot of people working on it, but it took the masons to pull it off," Atkinson said.
In addition to leaders of the medical center, KU Hospital CEO Bob Page and several members of the hospital leadership team turned out to recognize the importance of the effort to achieve NCI designation.
Jensen said without the support of the masons and the hospital, the chances of achieving NCI designation would be greatly diminished.
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