Pedersen family gifts $35 million to Primary Children’s Hospital in Lehi

Primary Children’s Hospital in Lehi has hit the halfway mark in its construction. At a press conference on Monday, October 10, executives from Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital and Gail Miller announced that Todd and Andie Pedersen have gifted $35 million to the hospital. Pedersen is the founder of Vivint Smart Home, one of North America’s largest residential security and smart home technology companies. 

“Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital has grown from an act of compassion for one child 100 years ago to delivering premier pediatric care to 100,000 children a year, regardless of their ability to pay,” said Katy Welkie, chief executive officer of Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital and vice president of Intermountain Children’s Health.

“Progress of this magnitude does not happen without a strong innovative vision for the future and vital support from our generous community,” Welkie added. “We are incredibly grateful to the Pedersen family for their tremendous gift to help children in the Intermountain West survive and thrive for generations by helping us build the nation’s model health system. In their honor, we are naming the patient tower at the Miller Family Campus the Todd and Andie Pedersen Patient Tower.”

“One of my family’s guiding principles is to ‘go about doing good until there’s too much good in the world,’” said Gail Miller. “When my family and I learned of Intermountain’s plan to build a model health system for children, we were moved by its mission. It was evident to us that this was a very important initiative that would benefit our communities today and well into the future.”

Miller introduced Harper Morgan, a 10-year-old girl from Lehi, who recently finished cancer treatment at Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City. “Harper remembers being scared after learning about her leukemia diagnosis and when she first started going to Primary Children’s Hospital. It was a scary thing. You’re there with people you don’t know and wondering what they will do to you, but the staff immediately put her at ease. She trusted them, and she was no longer afraid. She knew she was in good hands.”

“With the new Primary Children’s Hospital in Lehi, Harper lives right over there. She won’t have to travel to Salt Lake City for treatments if needed, which will be a real bonus to her family,” Miller added.

Harper gave Andie and Todd Pedersen a painting she’d done of her favorite movie, The Nightmare Before Christmas. “You did this? It’s amazing!” Todd Pedersen enthused. 

“I hope the Pedersen family knows how important they really are to all the sick kids. I was a patient at Primary Children’s Hospital, and I want to thank them for donating. Their help will go a long way,” said Harper.

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Todd and Andie Pedersen stood at the podium, and Todd introduced his mother before talking about the largest gift he and his family have provided for any organization.

“My Mom took time off from her calling to come here,” Todd began. “My Dad passed away a few years ago from Alzheimer’s. A lot of what I try to do is emulate what my parents taught me growing up. It didn’t sink in when I was younger, but it eventually did sink in that doing good for others, not just financially, is about the care we give others, the time we put in,and the respect we give them. My parents emulated that every single day of their lives and still do. I want to say that I loveyou, and I miss Dad and wish he was here. Thanks for your example.”

“We sat down as a family and talked about what we wanted to do to give back. We’ve been very blessed by this community. We went to Gail’s home, it was beautiful, and we had unbelievable scones,” remembered Todd.

“I’ve never eaten a scone with a fork and knife before,” added Andie Pedersen with a smile. “I remember talking with our family about putting our money toward a great cause before we used it for something else. I guess we all felt like this should come before anything else. We’re in a good place, and we don’t need anything else – this was our priority first, no matter what.” 

“We want to follow Gail Miller’s lead and also be an example to others,” Todd continued. “It doesn’t require millions of dollars to donate – it could be hundreds of dollars or ten dollars. It could be your time or your attention to others. Give what you can. For us, this is an investment that serves the most people in the biggest way possible, and we’re so pleased to be part of this. It’s a true honor for us to be able to participate.”