Bill Gatton Foundation gives $16 million to directly impact diabetes care and research at UK

The University of Kentucky’s Barnstable Brown Diabetes Center is proud to announce a transformative gift of $16 million from The Bill Gatton Foundation. Ten million dollars of the gift will honor Mr. Gatton’s friend and advisor, Barbara B. Edelman, by establishing the Barbara B. Edelman Barnstable-Brown Endowed Faculty Fund.  

“Mr. Gatton was a great and generous Kentuckian. I, along with my entire family, are grateful that Mr. Gatton’s foundation would honor me and support the Barnstable Brown Diabetes Center,” said Barbara Barnstable Edelman. “This gift, like all of his others, will help countless Kentuckians. There are no words to properly express my gratitude.”  

The center was established in 2008 by the Barnstable Brown family, from funds from its celebrity-laden Derby Eve Gala, and the family has continued to annually support the center.  

“The generous gift from The Bill Gatton Foundation, a testament to Mr. Gatton's enduring legacy, will have a profound impact on the health of the Commonwealth,” said University of Kentucky President Eli Capilouto. “This investment will expand our research capacity, enhance patient outreach and drive innovation in diabetes care.”

“The Bill Gatton Foundation’s remarkable gift is evidence of their commitment to improving the lives of the people of Kentucky,” said Simon Fisher, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Barnstable Brown Diabetes Center.  “A significant portion of the funding is dedicated to investing in talent that will be necessary to deliver exceptional diabetes care. The Bill Gatton Foundation will provide funding to students, professors and others to help build a pipeline of diabetes care specialists as well as recruit the best physicians and brightest scientists to the University of Kentucky.”

The $16 million gift is split into three main categories:

1. Expanding research and clinical care (Endowed Faculty Fund);

2. Expanding patient education and outreach through workforce development; and

3. Funding the next breakthrough in diabetes care and treatment by establishing an innovation fund.

Bill Gatton, who died in April 2022, was a lifelong philanthropist and supporter of UK. He was a 1954 graduate of the university’s College of Commerce and went on to become an incredibly successful businessman, entrepreneur and investor.

The foundation’s gift to the Barnstable Brown Diabetes Center is the latest in a series of generous donations from Mr. Gatton that have transformed the university, including record-breaking gifts to the Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food, and Environment, Gatton College of Business and Economics, the university’s Gatton Student Center and scholarships for students with unmet financial need through the UK LEADS initiative.