Yawkey Foundation Provides $1 Million Grant to Launch Mass Eye and Ear Emergency Department Renovation

Gift supports critical project for Mass Eye and Ear to expand patient access.

Boston, MA – Mass Eye and Ear is honored to announce a $1 million grant from the Yawkey Foundation to serve as a significant gift to support the renovation of its emergency department. The Mass Eye and Ear Emergency Department is one of only a few eye trauma centers in the country and serves all of New England. The project will build a brand new, more efficient and patient-centric emergency department that will get patients access faster with a better experience to accommodate the increased demand for these specialized services. The Emergency Department will remain open and serving patients throughout the renovation.

“For the Yawkey Foundation to contribute to this critical project speaks to their long history of ensuring patients have access to the care they need. We are honored to have their support,” said Mass Eye and Ear president CarolAnn Williams. “The increased demand for specialized emergency care has grown with fewer services available. We are honored that the Yawkey Foundation joins us to address this urgent need and vital resource for our region to ensure we are able to continue this world class care for all the communities we serve.”

The Mass Eye and Ear Emergency Department is located on the ground floor of the hospital’s main Boston campus at 243 Charles Street and operates 24/7 to provide specialized emergency care. Since 2017 Mass Eye and Ear has seen a 60% increase in patient demand for emergency services most of which cannot be seen at general hospitals. This increase warranted the need for this project. Patients rely on the Emergency Department for a range of urgent and complex issues, including open eye globe injuries, corneal infections, ulcers, uncontrolled eye pressure from glaucoma, or detached retinas—conditions that, if untreated, can lead to permanent blindness. Others seek care for sudden hearing loss, severe nosebleeds, or critical airway or head and neck cancer complications. These conditions must be treated immediately, or patients can suffer life-altering consequences or even death.

“Jean and Tom Yawkey cared deeply about the people of Boston, and that legacy continues through the Foundation’s commitment to expanding access to high-quality health care,” said Alicia Verity, chief executive officer of the Yawkey Foundation. “We are proud to support Mass Eye and Ear in renovating its Emergency Department, so that more patients—often in moments of fear or pain—can receive the expert, compassionate care they urgently need, any time of day or night.”

The Yawkey Foundation gift serves as a meaningful contribution toward the goal by Mass Eye and Ear to raise more than $5 million dollars to support the project. Learn more about Mass Eye and Ear emergency services.

About Mass Eye and Ear

Massachusetts Eye and Ear, founded in 1824, is an international center for treatment and research and a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. A member of Mass General Brigham, Mass Eye and Ear specializes in ophthalmology (eye care) and otolaryngology–head and neck surgery (ear, nose and throat care). Mass Eye and Ear clinicians provide care ranging from the routine to the very complex. Also home to the world's largest community of hearing and vision researchers, Mass Eye and Ear scientists are driven by a mission to discover the basic biology underlying conditions affecting the eyes, ears, nose, throat, head and neck and to develop new treatments and cures. In the 2025–2026 “Best Hospitals Survey,” U.S. News & World Report ranked Mass Eye and Ear #4 in the nation for eye care and #5 for ear, nose and throat care. For more information about life-changing care and research at Mass Eye and Ear, visit our blog, Focus, and follow us on Instagram, X and Facebook.

About The Yawkey Foundation

The Yawkey Foundation is dedicated to perpetuating the philanthropic legacy of Tom Yawkey and Jean Yawkey, whose quiet generosity over eight decades supported individuals and families in the communities closest to their hearts – Massachusetts and Georgetown County, South Carolina. With more than $600 million awarded to date in charitable grants, the Foundation supports nonprofit organizations working in health care, education, human services, youth and amateur athletics, arts and culture, and conservation and wildlife. To learn more, please visit the Yawkey Foundation website.