Fred has been a longtime supporter of the Dartmouth General Hospital, even pouring the concrete to help build it more than 40 years ago. He has close ties to the Foundation, as a past board member and currently the Honorary Chair for the Above and Beyond Campaign. Fred has also experienced the hospital personally as a former orthopedic patient.

“I experienced medical innovation firsthand when I underwent knee surgery at the Dartmouth General. Their surgeons perfected the half-knee replacement technique and for me it was a day surgery, versus a longer stay for a full knee,” says Fred Smithers.

In 2018, Fred made an amazing $2 million pledge to the Dartmouth General’s $13 million Above and Beyond Campaign in support of the acquisition of the latest tools, technologies and equipment for the hospital’s new Centre for Orthopedic Care. Fred is very prideful in the impact his $2M gift will bring to the patients of the hospital, helping fund the new Fred Smithers Centre for Orthopedic Care which will increase orthopedic capacity to reduce wait times for hip and knee replacements.

“I am proud to support this campaign and be able to put the best equipment in the hands of the staff and physicians so they can become the best orthopedic hospital in the country. The things they are doing at the Dartmouth General are extremely exceptional. They have grown a culture that is second to none and you need that because it’s all about the patient experience. I couldn’t be more proud to support that culture.”

We are so thankful for Fred and recognizing his amazing generosity with the naming of the Orthopedic Centre is so fitting given his lifetime of support for the Dartmouth General and his role as a champion for the innovation demonstrated by the team at Dartmouth General.