The gift is the largest to date from the St. Louis-headquartered corporation to Missouri’s No. 1 children’s hospital
ST. LOUIS (January 21, 2026) – St. Louis Children’s Hospital has received a $5 million donation from Emerson, a global automation leader headquartered in St. Louis, reinforcing the company’s longstanding commitment to improving children’s health. The investment will support pioneering WashU Medicine pediatric research at St. Louis Children’s Hospital and Healthy Kids Express Diabetes mobile unit.
“At Emerson, we are committed to strengthening the communities where we live and work, and supporting St. Louis Children’s Hospital is one way we put that commitment into action,” said Emerson President and CEO Lal Karsanbhai. “The hospital drives meaningful progress in pediatric research, expands access to care in underserved neighborhoods and provides families with hope and critical resources when they need them the most. That kind of lasting impact is worth investing in, and we’re proud to help advance their mission.”
The donation enables St. Louis Children’s to further its mission to do what’s right for kids. The funds will go to work immediately to support two priority projects:
The Center for Brain Development and Neurological Disorders
- This center of excellence led by WashU Medicine pediatric neurologist Christopher Smyser, MD, is part of the Children’s Discovery Institute — a collaboration between St. Louis Children’s Hospital, its Foundation and WashU Medicine — and will advance research on the developing brain, leading to earlier interventions and preventive therapies for neurological disorders that can improve young patients’ quality of life.
Healthy Kids Express – Diabetes
- This joint effort by St. Louis Children’s Hospital and WashU Medicine provides accessible, comprehensive, and individualized health care to children and adolescents living with diabetes and prediabetes in St. Louis City and St. Louis County through a school-based mobile diabetes clinic. Launched in 2023, the Healthy Kids Express Diabetes Mobile Unit remains the first and only mobile pediatric diabetes clinic in the country.
“When partners like Emerson invest in these programs for the long term, it means we can continue delivering care and discoveries that truly change lives,” said St. Louis Children’s Hospital chief development officer Tanya Waskiewicz. “Emerson’s gift strengthens the future of both cutting-edge pediatric research and essential community services, ensuring children in St. Louis have the support they need today and in the years ahead.”
Since 1985, Emerson has gifted $11 million to St. Louis Children’s Hospital. This latest – and largest – donation reinforces the company’s longstanding community involvement and philanthropic commitment to the St. Louis region.
About St. Louis Children’s Hospital
St. Louis Children’s Hospital is part of BJC Health, one of the largest nonprofit health care organizations in the United States and has provided exceptional care for children from all 50 states and 80 countries around the world for more than 140 years. With its academic partner, WashU Medicine, St. Louis Children’s is consistently ranked among the nation’s best pediatric hospitals by U.S. News & World Report and earns national distinction for comprehensive services that include heart, cancer, neurology, and orthopedics. St. Louis Children’s is among an elite group of pediatric hospitals worldwide that have achieved a fifth consecutive, four-year Magnet Distinction® designation by the American Nurses Credentialing Center. St. Louis Children’s is also one of the few pediatric hospitals in the Midwest nationally recognized by the American College of Surgeons as a Level 1 Pediatric Trauma Center, which is the highest classification of trauma care.
About the Children’s Discovery Institute
Founded in 2006, the Children’s Discovery Institute (CDI) is a research partnership between St. Louis Children’s Hospital and WashU Medicine. Created to accelerate innovative treatments for children once considered untreatable, the CDI brings together WashU Medicine physician-scientists across disciplines to speed breakthroughs from the lab to the bedside. Donor support has been vital to this work. Through the St. Louis Children’s Hospital Foundation, more than $109 million has advanced CDI research, leading to 1,666 scientific publications and more than $655 million in competitive external funding. As the CDI embarks on its next phase of growth, philanthropic investment remains essential to pursuing bold ideas and transforming the future of pediatric medicine in St. Louis and beyond.
About Emerson
Emerson (NYSE: EMR) is a global automation leader delivering solutions for the most demanding technology challenges. Headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, Emerson is engineering the autonomous future, enabling customers to optimize operations and accelerate innovation. For more information, visit Emerson.com.
