Anida's Gift
Her legacy lives on in a space for those undergoing chemotherapy
On June 25, 2025, Anida Johnson, a long-time friend of the KGH Foundation and supporter of health care at Kelowna General Hospital, took her last breath. A ‘never-smoker’, Anida passed from lung cancer, but not before she left a gift in her will to help others in our community facing a similar struggle.
Anida Johnson made Kelowna her home more than twenty years ago. She embraced life with curiosity, enthusiasm, and deep appreciation for the world around her. To all who knew her, she embodied wellness and vitality, making her lung cancer diagnosis even more difficult to understand.
Guided by a shared desire to turn loss into lasting good, Anida and her husband, Mark, knew they wanted to create meaningful change at KGH.
We wanted to find a way to help as many people as possible. We chose to support health care because it touches all of us, from birth until our last breath.
Mark Johnson
Today, their generosity lives on through Anida’s Room, a dedicted treatment space that stands as a tribute to Anida’s life and has already made a profound difference for patients and care teams at KGH.
Having opened this past fall, Anida’s Room is already transforming care for patients undergoing chemotherapy across KGH. Designed with safety, comfort, and dignity at its core, the space allows therapy nurses to safely administer cancer treatments for inpatients, direct admissions, patients from medical and surgical units, and those coming from the ambulatory care clinic.
By enabling close patient monitoring, immediate access to specialized equipment, and a more streamlined flow of care, Anida’s Room is reducing delays and easing pressure on care teams. The impact of Anida and Mark’s generosity is already being felt — helping ensure patients receive the treatments they need, when they need them, while supporting practitioners to deliver the best possible care.
Anida’s generosity will continue to shine through this space. In Anida’s Room, her legacy can be felt in moments of calm and in the quiet relief that comes when care is delivered with dignity and compassion. She is deeply missed by all who loved her and had the privilege of knowing her. Yet through her gift, Anida’s life continues to bring comfort to others, transforming loss into healing and offering a sense of peace when it is needed most.
