Ma JianRong, chairman of the leading Chinese apparel manufacturing firm Ningbo Shenzhou Knitting Co., Ltd., has donated $500,000 to the OHSU COVID-19 Pandemic Response Fund.
Ningbo Shenzhou is a longtime Nike supplier. Ma was inspired by Nike’s history of stepping up to support its community and wanted to contribute to an organization in the Portland area. He decided to support OHSU after learning of the university through a $7 million donation from Nike leaders to OHSU’s coronavirus response in March.
“We are grateful for and heartened by Mr. Ma’s desire to so generously contribute toward our community. His gift will further our understanding of COVID-19, improve how we deliver health care, and ultimately, help save lives,” said OHSU President Danny Jacobs, M.D., M.P.H., FACS.
The funds will be put toward the area of greatest need in OHSU’s fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, Ma’s generous donation could enable OHSU to expand access to care, keep frontline health care workers safe as they care for patients, expand diagnostic testing, conduct coronavirus research, reduce hospital overcrowding, or coordinate patient care across Oregon.
“COVID-19 has changed everything about how all of us live,” Ma said. “Collaboration will be crucial as we work to control the spread of COVID-19 around the world. Ningbo Shenzhou Knitting Co., Ltd. is proud to help OHSU respond to the needs created by this public health crisis.”
“We thank Mr. Ma for his extraordinary generosity to advance OHSU’s mission of providing excellence in health care, research and outreach,” said Jorge Casimiro, Nike’s chief social & community impact officer and member of the OHSU Foundation Board of Trustees. “We appreciate this support of OHSU and the Portland community.”
Ningbo Shenzhou Knitting Co., Ltd., is located in Ningbo, the economic center of the southern portion of China’s Yangtze River Delta. The company operates in China, Vietnam and Cambodia.