$1.5 million donation for mental health, substance use at Royal Inland Hospital

KAMLOOPS – A local property management group has committed $1.5 million to Royal Inland Hospital’s patient care tower through a multi-year donation.

In a news release issued by Royal Inland Hospital Foundation today, Oct. 2, the donation from Kelson Group Property Management will be set aside to support the expansion and modernization of the mental health and substance department of the hospital.

“We believe mental health is becoming increasingly important to focus on for the overall health of our communities, especially as we strive to help people live better,” Kelson Group vice president, Jason Fawcett says in the release.

“We see how declining mental health affects our residents and the people in our communities and we want to help. With a broad demographic in our buildings, we want to ensure we’re doing everything we can to house people well while providing the supports they need.”

The new department for mental health and substance use will be inviting, calm and therapeutic environment, according to health service administrator Debi Morris.

“The new floor will have private patient rooms, comfortable lounges, outdoor courtyards and lots of natural light — all conducive to healing and recovery. We are extremely grateful to Kelson Group for their generous support of our new department,” Morris says in the release.

The $1.5 million pledge from local family-owned Kelson Group is the largest commitment Royal Inland Hospital Foundation has received from the company. The founder and president of the company, Ron Fawcett, is well known in the city for his contributions to various community organizations.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Karen Edwards or call (250) 819-3723 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.

We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above.