“Surviving the surgery, and in such good health, is a miracle to me. Without a doubt, Nancy and I wanted to make a meaningful gift to the hospital as a way to say thank you.”
—SCOTT SCHOEN

In May 2020, 62-year-old Scott Schoen was exercising at home when he started experiencing chest pain and dizziness. Though Massachusetts had a surge in COVID-19 cases at that time, he and his wife, Nancy Adams, did not hesitate to seek medical help. After Mr. Schoen was rushed to the Brigham by ambulance, they learned he needed emergency surgery to mend his aorta, the main artery that pumps blood from the heart to the rest of the body.

“We look at May 19, 2020, as my new first birthday,” says Mr. Schoen, who recovered with excellent results after a 7-hour procedure. “Surviving the surgery, and in such good health, is a miracle to me,” he adds, noting the high mortality rate for an aortic dissection if not tended to quickly. “Without a doubt, Nancy and I wanted to make a meaningful gift to the hospital as a way to say thank you.”

The couple committed $1 million to the Brigham for research to improve the understanding of vascular and cardiovascular disease. Half their gift fuels a vascular disease biobank and biospecimen collection, under the direction of Gerard Doherty, MD, chair of the Department of Surgery, and half supports women’s cardiovascular disease initiatives under the leadership of Hadine Joffe, MD, MSc, executive director of the Mary Horrigan Connors Center for Women’s Health and Gender Biology.

“We’re grateful for Scott and Nancy’s generosity and flexibility to support areas we think will be most effective in developing new knowledge of disease,” says Dr. Doherty.

Adds Dr. Joffe, “With Scott as a member of the Mass General Brigham Board of Trustees and Nancy as a member of the Women’s Health Advisory Board at the Brigham, they are both tuned into the needs for research to help improve diagnosis and treatment.”

For Mr. Schoen, the ability to return to full activity one month after surgery, including golfing and exercising, with no complications or lingering pain is the best outcome he could have imagined. He says, “It’s a new lease on life. We feel blessed to give back to the talented vascular experts at the Brigham.”

About Scott Schoen and Nancy Adams

Scott Schoen is CEO of Baylon Capital Management, a private investment partnership he formed in Boston, MA. He is also a senior advisor of Thomas H. Lee Partners, a Boston-based private equity investment firm where he has held various positions since 1986, including co-president and vice chair. Scott is chair of the Board of Trustees for Partners Continuing Care and serves on the Mass General Brigham Board of Trustees.

Nancy Adams is a member of the Women’s Health Advisory Board at the Brigham. In addition, she holds leadership roles in the community, including as a board member of the Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center and co-director of the PAO Arts Center, which celebrates and strengthens the Asian Pacific Islander (API) community of Chinatown and Greater Boston through access to culturally relevant art, education, and creative programs.

Follow Scott Schoen on LinkedIn.