Legacy Wall Honors Major Gift to Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center

A new five-story patient care tower at the recently renovated and expanded Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center is now named the Friese Family Patient Tower, in honor of a $50 million donation from Don and Andrea Friese. Altitude worked with the Providence Tarzana Foundation to design a legacy wall that honors this transformational gift, featuring photos of the family and descriptions of their generations of generosity. The goal was to spotlight the Friese family with a donor recognition program that stands out – acknowledging the significance of their gift, while also blending in with Providence’s design guidelines as well as the interior design of the new patient tower.

Located in the Tarzana neighborhood within the San Fernando Valley suburbs of Los Angeles, the medical center is owned and operated through a joint venture between Providence St. Joseph Health and Cedars-Sinai, two of Southern California’s leading nonprofit healthcare organizations. The expanded medical center now features the new patient care tower with all private rooms, an expanded Emergency Department, new diagnostic and treatment services, and enhanced outpatient and ambulatory services.

Don and Andrea Friese, along with their children and grandchildren, have been San Fernando Valley residents since 1961, when Don took an entry level position at the small glass products manufacturing company, C.R. Laurence. Through the years, he rose through the ranks, buying the company over time and transforming it into the leading architectural hardware, equipment, tools and supplies company in the glass and glazing industry. The family is well known and respected as active community philanthropists. Their Friese Foundation is inspired by Don’s commitment to improving the lives of those around him, and serves to promote healing and wellness for underserved individuals and communities. The $50 million gift to Providence Tarzana Foundation is the largest ever to a Providence hospital in California and among the largest across the 52-hospital health system.