Longtime Donor Also a Grateful Health Center Patient

“I didn’t know when I started donating 24 years ago that UConn would save my life—more than once,” says Lou Friedman.

Lou and Judi Friedman (UConn Foundation Photo)

Lou and Judi Friedman (UConn Foundation Photo)

From the UConn Foundation’s newsletter, Our Moment (September 2012)

“I didn’t know when I started donating 24 years ago that UConn would save my life—more than once. I’m proud to call myself a friend of the UConn Health Center,” says Lou Friedman.

Lou and Judi Friedman (UConn Foundation Photo)
Lou and Judi Friedman (UConn Foundation Photo)

When asked what Friedman thinks about the Pat and Jim Calhoun Cardiology Center at the UConn Health Center, he says it’s the life raft that has kept him enjoying his life with his wife, Judi, and their grown children.

Living with chronic arrhythmia has meant many doctors’ visits over the past several years. W. David Hager, MD, professor and director of the Heart Failure Center at the Calhoun Cardiology Center, has been his partner in maintaining a healthy heart. That’s why Hager was the cardiologist Friedman wanted to see when his general practitioner was concerned with the results of a standard EKG following an out-patient procedure last year. Hager said Friedman needed a pacemaker right away.

“If not for Dr. Hager and the unbelievable nurses and staff at the Calhoun Cardiology Center, I would not be here today,” says Friedman. “A hospital is only as good as the people who fill it. I am profoundly grateful to the nurses, doctors, and staff who have made it their mission to see me through my worst days and send me home healthier.”

The Friedmans were impressed by the compassion they experienced. “Love was extended to us. Our children and grandchildren were always made to feel welcome,” says Mrs. Friedman. “There was such a high level of care. The staff went above and beyond.”

She was so moved that she created “Love Works” buttons and handed them out to her husband’s doctors, nurses, other providers who went the extra mile. “It was absolutely a unique experience,” she explains.

“That’s why I give back,” adds Mr. Friedman. “I want to be a part of keeping our UConn Health Center the best it can be.”

The Friedmans have been annual donors to the UConn Health Center and the greater University since 1988. They give to clinical care and faculty funds across the UConn Health Center, including gifts toward the Calhoun Cardiology Center. The Friedmans also support UConn’s Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts through the Jorgensen Circle of Friends fund.


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