A familiar Fresno name’s $13.6 million gift to Saint Agnes Medical Center announced Thursday became the largest one in the hospital’s history.

The donation from the King J. Richter Estate will go toward the hospital’s planned new emergency department, new medical technology and services, and improve access to care, the hospital said in a news release.

“The generosity of King J. Richter will allow Saint Agnes to invest directly in our facilities and care services to ensure we can meet the growing and complex needs of our community right here at home for generations to come,” said Dr. Gurvinder Kaur, president of Saint Agnes.

Emergency Department Slated for 2026 Groundbreaking

The hospital launched its fundraising campaign for the new emergency department earlier this year. They plan to break ground on the new facility in late 2027 or 2028, according to a spokesperson with Saint Agnes.

The emergency department — built in the early 2000s and sized to handle 50,000 visits a year — regularly reaches 90,000 patients a year, the spokesperson told GV Wire.

Despite not being in Fresno anymore, Richter’s philanthropic impact can still be felt. Richter’s grandfather founded Richter Bottling Works which later became Fresno’s Pepsi Cola Botting Company. The family then sold the bottling company, led by Richter’s brother, Bud, to Liggett Group in 1975. Richter has since moved to Beverly Hills, according to Fresno Pacific University, but he still regularly gives to Fresno institutions.

In August, Richter gave $21.9 million for scholarships at Fresno Pacific University, the largest in the university’s history and the second largest to a Central Valley university.