Mobile, Ala.-based USA Health Children's & Women's Hospital received a more than $1 million gift from 81-year-old Louis Mapp, a volunteer at the hospital, and his wife Melinda Mapp, according to the StarTribune.
The donation will be used to establish an endowment for the hospital's Hollis J. Wiseman Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, which admits about 900 babies annually. Mr. Mapp started volunteering at the NICU about a year and a half ago. Once a week, he helps rock, feed or burp infants in the unit.
"We wanted something long after we are gone … to support these precious people and their families," Mapp told WKRG-TV.
Mr. and Ms. Mapp had one stipulation with their donation. They wanted the NICU medical staff to decide how the money should be spent. The staff's first purchase will be Leo beds, which are used for babies that weigh less than two pounds.
"It's an honor for us to share our blessings, and we can't think of a better place to do it than here at the NICU unit of Children's & Women's Hospital," Mr. Mapp told the StarTribune.