04 Jun PHILANTHROPIST LOIS POPE GIVES $10 MILLION TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI TO ESTABLISH A FUND FOR NEUROSCIENCE RESEARCH IN MEMORY OF HER DAUGHTER
Focus on research into Alzheimer’s and other neurological diseases and disorders
To name the Lois Pope Laboratory Wing in Memory of Lorraine Pope in the Lois Pope LIFE Center
Miami and Manalapan, FL, June 4, 2025 – Lois Pope watched with dismay as her daughter Lorraine suffered from Alzheimer’s disease before her death earlier this year.
Wanting to honor Lorraine’s memory and do more to help others afflicted with the disease that progressively strips its victims of their memory, cognitive skills, and the ability to perform simple everyday tasks, Lois Pope, who is one of the country’s foremost female philanthropists, announced today that she is making a $10 million gift to name the Lois Pope Laboratory Wing in memory of Lorraine Pope, located at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine in the Lois Pope LIFE Center. The donation will establish the Lois Pope Neuroscience Research Fund to support the advancement of research in Alzheimer’s disease and other neurological and neurodegenerative diseases and disorders.
The new donation is the third eight-figure contribution Lois Pope has made to the University of Miami – in 2000, her $10 million gift to The Miami Project, led to the building of the Lois Pope LIFE Center which is the permanent home to The Miami Project, the nation’s foremost center for research and treatment of spinal cord and traumatic brain injuries and other neurological diseases and disorders including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, ALS, MS, and stroke. The Center will now also be home to the newly named laboratory wing in honor of her generosity.
In 2020, Lois Pope made a $12 million donation, in honor of her mother who was afflicted with macular degeneration, to establish the Lois Pope Center for Retinal and Macular Degeneration Research at the University of Miami’s Bascom Palmer Eye Institute and two years ago, Mrs. Pope made another $1 million contribution to Bascom Palmer to advance its initiative to develop the world’s first whole eye transplant, and to create Lois’ Vision4Kids.
“Alzheimer’s is an insidious disease,” Lois Pope said. “Knowing how it robbed my daughter of any recognition of who I and other family members were, and who she herself was, couldn’t have been more heartbreaking. So, I knew I had to do something to try and help to eradicate it or at least mitigate its symptoms. While there has been progress over the past few years in therapies to slow the disease, early detection methods, and even how the disease develops in the brain, I wanted to give this work a real jolt. Plus, I wanted to do it at a place that is not only in my home state but is also recognized for doing cutting-edge research in Alzheimer’s and other neurological diseases and disorders in the Lois Pope LIFE Center.
“Lois Pope’s generosity has touched so many lives all over the world. We could not be more grateful for her continued belief in, and support of, the basic and translational research we conduct in the Lois Pope LIFE Center. Our approach to some of the most challenging neurological conditions, acute injuries and more progressive neurodegenerative disorders known to man uniquely positions us to advance new research findings and translate them with the goal of transforming people’s lives,” said W. Dalton Dietrich, Ph.D., scientific director, The Miami Project, the Kinetic Concepts Distinguished Chair in Neurosurgery, senior associate dean for Team Science, co-director of the Institute for Neural Engineering, and professor of neurological surgery.
More than one billion people worldwide suffer from some form of neurological injury, disease and disorder. Brain injury is a significant risk factor leading to cognitive impairment and neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. Lois Pope’s generous gift will help advance neuroscience programs to develop new diagnostic approaches and the development of novel therapeutic interventions to target disease mechanisms to ultimately improve the quality of life for patients.
ABOUT LOIS POPE
One of America’s leading female philanthropists, Lois Pope is recognized as the country’s foremost advocate for veterans and especially disabled veterans, earning the moniker, “The Pope of Disabled Veterans.” She created and spearheaded the legislation, building, and endowment of the American Veterans Disabled for Life Memorial, which was dedicated on October 5, 2014, in Washington, D.C. as the nation’s first permanent public tribute to the four million living disabled American veterans and all those who have died.
Mrs. Pope is also a stalwart champion of animal health and welfare who, among many other initiatives, endowed an eponymous Pet Clinic at Tri-County Animal Rescue in Boca Raton, the only such center that offers comprehensive low-cost and even free medical services for dogs, cats and other pets from low-income families. She is also a foremost supporter of America Humane’s vast array of emergency services for animals that have been lost or abandoned during extreme weather events or that are victims of severe animal abuse.
An ardent advocate for the well-being and welfare of children, Mrs. Pope’s generosity has resulted in the establishment of several programs at the Palm Beach County Food Bank to mitigate the number of food-insecure children in that region; an initiative that provided summer camp experiences to more than 125,000 children who otherwise would never have the opportunity to enjoy such an experience; a scholarship program for aspiring community physicians; and a fund at Save the Children for provide food and basic necessities to children displaced by the war in Ukraine.
About the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine and The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis – Established in 1952 as Florida’s first medical school, the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine has become a global leader in medical education, research and clinical care. Boasting more than 1,700 faculty members, 48 centers and institutes and 29 clinical and basic science departments, the Miller School is one of Florida’s top NIH-funded medical school. Its innovative dual-degree programs, cutting-edge discoveries in genetics, cellular therapeutics and cancer care and commitment to community health underscore its pivotal role in advancing medicine locally and globally. The Miller School continues to pioneer transformative solutions to complex medical challenges, making it a beacon of innovation and excellence in health care.
The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, located in the Lois Pope LIFE Center, is a Center of Excellence at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. The Miami Project is a premier neuroscience research program conducting cutting-edge discovery, translational and clinical investigations. Researchers are investigating novel mechanisms of injury and repair and new treatments for spinal cord and brain injury, peripheral nerve injury and neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, ALS, Multiple Sclerosis, and stroke. In the area of neuromodulation, The Miami Project faculty are conducting clinical studies utilizing brain-computer interface work and different forms of neuromodulation to improve function and quality of life in people living with spinal cord injury and other neurological disorders.