April 15, 2008 Media Advisory Children's Hospital of Southwest Florida Adds Six New Beds to its Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Longtime Donors Shelley and Jack Blais to Dedicate New Unit on April 17 The Lee Memorial Health System Foundation today announced that funds raised through its annual Boston Red Sox Celebrity Classic and Diamond Dinner events in years 2006, 2007 and 2008 will be used to support the opening of a new six-bed unit for premature babies and their families. The new unit will be named for Shelley and Jack Blais, who each year, for eight consecutive years, have provided a dollar-for-dollar match to all funds raised by the Boston Red Sox signature event series. Over the past eight years, with the Blais' generous match, nearly $3.6 million has been raised by the annual Boston Red Sox signature event series. The new infant beds will be separated into six individual rooms, allowing for increased privacy and the ability to provide highly specialized treatment for each individual high-risk baby. The beds will be equipped with the latest in medical technology and are designed to replicate the womb as closely as possible so the infant can progress as naturally as possible. The rooms will be equipped with the very best in premature infant technology and will allow the infant to be kept in temperatures, lighting and sound levels that are deemed most appropriate for his or her stage of development. The expansion, necessitated by increasing patient volumes, will greatly reduce the number of transports to Tampa and Miami. "It is always our goal to keep babies and their families together. The expansion will enable us to keep more babies close to home and reduce the economic hardship and emotional strain on parents of premature babies," said Michele Waddell, Nursing Director for the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Added Dr. John Iacuone, Executive Director, The Children's Hospital of Southwest Florida, "We are committed to delivering the very best in care to the community and these new state-of-the-art beds will allow us the technology to provide highly specialized care to our tiniest of patients." Sharon MacDonald, Chief Foundation Officer for Lee Memorial Health System praised the commitment by Shelley and Jack Blais, "We are truly blessed to call Shelley and Jack friends and are so pleased to honor their heartfelt philanthropy with the dedication of this new unit. It is only through the generous donations of individuals and the community that we can continue our life-saving mission." The Shelley & Jack Blais Neonatal Center dedication will take place on Thursday, April 17, promptly at 11:00AM just outside the main Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at HealthPark. Press are encouraged to attend. Families who have experienced the lifesaving services and treatments of the Children's Hospital of Southwest Florida's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit will be available in person or by phone for comment. The Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida is located at HealthPark Medical Center in Fort Myers and is part of the Lee Memorial Health System. As the only facility of its kind between Tampa and Miami, The Children’s Hospital is dedicated to giving children and teenagers the highest level of medical and surgical care available anywhere. Both inpatients and outpatients receive comprehensive care for medical problems ranging from minor ailments to critical injuries.

Press contact information Karen Krieger, Director Public Affairs Phone: 239-454-8765 Fax: 239-454-8775 Pager: 239-930-6158 E-Mail: Karen.krieger@leememorial.org