[King Township, York Region March 3, 2021] – Founded in 2001 by John Abele, cofounder of Boston Scientific and a global leader in the field of less invasive medicine, the centre’s vision encompassed a passion for technological inventions, concepts and ideas made to benefit communities and society as a whole. His involvement in these areas influenced him to envision a living learning place that supports innovation where groups of people could come together to collaboratively solve problems. The Kingbridge Centre’s infrastructure is a cornerstone of its mission and vision. The Kingbridge Centre property encompasses 113 acres of rolling hills, several kilometers of managed woodland trails, 124 spacious guest rooms, 44 conference rooms and extensive recreational amenities.
This year Mr. Abele made the decision to retire, entrusting the ownership of the Kingbridge Centre to the Pathak Family Trust and its affiliated entity Ekagrata Inc.
The Kingbridge Centre will continue to deliver world-class residential convening, leadership development, corporate training, conferencing and retreat services while engaging local community for shared discovery and problem solving. The Pathak Family Trust is committed to upholding the standard of innovation, discovery, and excellence long represented by the Kingbridge Centre, and to continue the strong partnerships with local community, government and academia. Kingbridge’s new Chairman, Prashant Pathak, has been involved in Mr. Abele’s vision and mission alongside the Kingbridge team for over 15 years and is excited to carry on the legacy of collective learning, problem solving, and innovation. Mr. Abele will continue to advise Mr. Pathak and the rest of the Kingbridge team as Chairman Emeritus.
General Manager of the Kingbridge Centre, Lisa Gilbert who shares a similar passion for creating learning and collaborative problem solving infrastructures, will continue to work with clients, oversee business operations and evolve the vision with Mr. Pathak and the Kingbridge team.
King Mayor Steve Pellegrini and King-Vaughan MPP and Education Minister Stephen Lecce toured the facility last week and met with the Kingbridge team.
“I want to say a heartfelt thank you to Mr. Abele for his service to the King community and his vision for The Kingbridge Centre, providing a living learning space for community to come together,” said Stephen Lecce, MPP for King-Vaughan. “I am thrilled that Kingbridge Centre will continue to be a centre of excellence for innovation and entrepreneurship in the heart of our community under the leadership of Mr. Pathak. I am committed to supporting jobs and growth in King as we look to drive Ontario’s economic recovery.”
Pathak has begun to expand The Kingbridge vision by engaging with key stakeholder partners to harness the infrastructure of the Kingbridge Centre to drive economic prosperity by accelerating ground breaking innovations that drive community transformation, and scale up environmental sustainability initiatives which make a positive impact in the world. Food, agriculture, energy and water are four of the key focus areas aligned with economic priorities of King Township and York Region. Programming will be developed and offered to support these objectives, helping to foster the next generation of leaders and convene people who are interested in exploring new ideas and collaboratively solving problems from a higher level of thinking and shared purpose.
“We are excited that Mr. Pathak is committed to growing the strong tradition of innovation at the Kingbridge Centre”, said King Township Mayor Steve Pelligrini. “King Township is a very special place, with a rich inheritance of protecting the environment and growing fresh produce to feed the world. Having a place that fosters citizen-led innovations contributing to enhancing those legacies is a wonderful opportunity for our community to imagine and realize the next chapter of King Township”, he added.
The Kingbridge Centre is currently serving as a Temporary Transitional Shelter for York Residents in need, through a partnership with The Regional Municipality of York and Salvation Army.
“On behalf of York Regional Council, I commend Kingbridge Centre for their ongoing commitment to collaboration and innovation,” said York Region Chairman and CEO Wayne Emmerson. “Kingbridge Centre has been an exceptional community partner in helping keep our residents safe during the pandemic; opening their doors to some of our most vulnerable residents and offering temporary transitional shelter to self-isolate during COVID-19. York Region welcomes future opportunities to partner and support our community together.”
Looking beyond the current situation with the COVID-19 pandemic, the Kingbridge Centre team is excited to build impactful partners in supporting economic recovery efforts, and growing innovative businesses. Mr. Pathak’s extensive global network, experience with risk capital investing and building businesses will support those efforts. Plans will be announced later this spring.
In the meantime, Kingbridge Centre will continue to be a strong community partner. Mr. Abele, Mr. Pathak and Lisa Gilbert warmly welcome you to the Kingbridge Centre and look forward to many years of learning, collaboration and innovation.
