UHN Foundation’s Grand Cru Culinary Wine Festival celebrated its 20th anniversary in spectacular style, raising a record-breaking $38 million to support UHN’s new surgical tower at Toronto Western Hospital.
This includes a transformative $30 million donation from John and Rosella D’Angelo, Giuseppe and Lidia Maio, and Claudio and Gina Memme in partnership with HBNG Charitable Foundation, marking the largest donation to the $300M tower campaign to date.
The three-day celebration opened with an unforgettable night at Toronto’s Enercare Centre, where more than 5,000 attendees including Ontario Premier Doug Ford, Toronto Raptor Kelly Olynyk, and actor Eric Braeden joined for a Halpern Portfolio Tasting and a record-breaking live auction.
Standout auction items included exclusive art by Mr. Brainwash and Edward Burtynsky, a Rolls-Royce Spectre from Paul Cummings of Grand Touring Automobiles, rare wines, and much more.
In honor of Grand Touring Automobiles 50th anniversary and Grand Cru’s 20th anniversary, Grand Touring Paul Cummings hosted an intimate dinner celebrating their continued support and partnership with the UHN Foundation and the Grand Cru Culinary & Wine Festival.
Guests enjoyed a Michelin-star dining experience, complemented by hand-selected vintages from Halpern Wines, and an exclusive preview of the Rolls-Royce Spectre, specially designated as a donation vehicle.
The evening was a celebration of both legacy and philanthropy, reflecting our enduring commitment to luxury and, above all, to supporting transformative care at UHN.
Grand Cru’s founder, Todd Halpern, a UHN Trustee and UHN Foundation Board Member, reflected on the extraordinary impact the event has had on health care advancement at UHN over the last two decades.
Todd A. Halpern is the President of Halpern Enterprises, a leading wine and spirits importer in Canada, and has been involved since 1979.
He is also Vice Chair of the UHN Foundation Board and has championed various health campaigns, receiving multiple awards for his philanthropic efforts, including the Meritorious Service Medal in 202012.
Halpern Enterprises represents over 175 wineries globally, reflecting Todd’s dedication to quality and relationships in the wine industry.
Halpern has made significant contributions to the UHN Foundation.
He serves as Vice Chair of the UHN Foundation Board and is a Board Champion for several campaigns, including the Krembil Neuroscience Centre, Brain, Arthritis, and Peter Munk Cardiac Centre campaigns. In 2008, Mr. Halpern received the Chevalier de l’Ordre du mérite agricole (Knight of the Order of Agricultural Merit) from the Government France.
In 2020, Mr. Halpern was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal by the Governor General of Canada in recognition of his philanthropy in support of UHN, in particular through the creation of the Grand Cru Festival.
Halpern founded the Grand Cru Culinary Wine Festival, which has raised over $127 million for medical research and innovations at UHN since 2005.
The festival supports various UHN programs and has been instrumental in advancing healthcare research and infrastructure.
“Thanks to the incredible generosity of the D’Angelo, Maio, and Memme families and events like Grand Cru, we’re witnessing the future of health care transformation in real time,” said Halpern.
“The new surgical tower will reshape the health care landscape not just for Toronto, but globally. I can’t imagine a more important cause for Grand Cru to support, and I’m so proud of the impact our event has had on healthcare over the last 20 years.”
AS part of the 20th year celebrations, 19 private homes across Toronto and the GTA hosted Exclusive Wine & Dine Experiences with some of the world’s most celebrated chefs, including multi-Michelin-starred Daniel Boulud (Daniel), top chef Sash Simpson (Sash), and Eron and Elena Novalski (Noce, Aria).
Each chef crafted custom menus paired with wines from international producers featured in the Halpern Portfolio, creating unforgettable culinary experiences.
Todd Halpern and his wife Ellen hosted one of these exclusive dinners at their home, where they raised an incredible $1.15M in donations for a piece of art by Jane Waterous.
The piece, titled One World, will eventually be put on display in the new surgical tower upon its completion in 2028.
“We are deeply grateful to our donors, sponsors, volunteers, and all who came together to make this milestone event possible,” said Julie Quenneville, CEO of UHN Foundation.
“Having raised $170M since its inception, Grand Cru’s 20-year legacy is a testament to the power of community, and to Todd Halpern’s vision that together we can help Canada’s #1 hospital transform health care.”
Special thanks to event sponsors including Grand Touring Automobiles, American Express, CIBC, BMO CHANEL and Miele among others.
Part of University Health Network (UHN), UHN Foundation raises funds for Toronto General Hospital, Toronto Western Hospital, Toronto Rehab and The Michener Institute of Education.
No one ever changed the world on their own: donor support is critical to upholding the excellence in patient care that UHN is known for and changing the status quo of health care – helping recruit and train the brightest medical minds from around the world, complete critical capital projects, develop new treatments for disease, and advance bold medical research.
UHN is Canada’s No. 1 hospital and the world’s No. 1 publicly funded hospital. With 10 sites and more than 20,000 members of TeamUHN, UHN consists of Toronto General Hospital, Toronto Western Hospital, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, The Michener Institute of Education at UHN and West Park Healthcare Centre. As Canada’s top research hospital, the scope of research and complexity of cases at UHN have made it a national and international source for discovery, education and patient care.