Two hospitals that have received donations from the family of Marco Mutzo, the drunk driver who killed three children and their grandfather in a crash in 2015, say they will not remove his family’s name from their institutions.
This comes as calls for the Muzzo name to be erased from the region as the Neville Lake family, who lost three children in a crash seven years ago, faces a new wave of tragedy. The children’s father, Edward Lake, died on Monday.
“Marco Muzzo is responsible for the deaths of five people, including three children, due to drunk driving. His family should not be honored with buildings bearing their name, “said Barbara-Ann Smith, an Ontario woman who launched a petition that garnered more than 3,000 signatures in less than 24 hours.
Mackenzie Health and the SickKids Foundation, which are linked to the hospital for sick children, both told CTV News Toronto that they had no plans to remove the Muzzo family from their hospitals.
A Mackenzie Health spokesman acknowledged the huge loss of family and the public response that followed the tragedy in a statement Tuesday.
“We understand the strong emotions people have expressed about the confession shown at our hospital, and we accept and respect their concerns,” said a spokesman for Mackenzie Health.
However, they said the hospital had no plans to remove the family’s name from their institution. This was followed by a joint $ 15 million donation from the De Gasperis and Muzzo families in 2017 to support the construction of the new Cortellucci Vaughan Hospital. Their donation came at the same time as Marco Mutzo was in prison after the 2015 crash.
“We have no plans to remove the building’s plaque, as it acknowledges the family’s long history of philanthropy, including many generous donations to Mackenzie Health. Their contribution has helped build an exceptional health facility for the community, and we are very grateful for that. “
In a parallel response, SickKids acknowledged the “unimaginable grief” the Neville Lake family was going through.
“In 2006, the Muzzo family donated to the SickKids Foundation in support of our operating room remodeling project, and a small plaque recognizing the gift was placed in a nearby hallway,” said SickKids Foundation spokeswoman Sandra Ciovitit.
“There are currently no plans to change donor recognition.”
Smith, meanwhile, said she began a petition Monday night after hearing about Edward’s death because she could not imagine his wife going through a hospital and seeing the name Muzzo on a wall.
“I can’t even imagine,” she said.
“If you’re really a philanthropist coming from the right place, you don’t need your name on a building to do it.”
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