HUP Pavilion’s halo lights up: A beacon for awareness

The top of the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania Pavilion is periodically lit up in colors to support causes that matter to Penn Medicine, like Rare Disease Day and relief efforts for Ukrainians.

The top of the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP) Pavilion lit up in colors for the first time this winter to support causes that matter to Penn Medicine, glowing in loops of red for heart disease awareness; blue, green, pink, and purple for patients with rare diseases; and blue and yellow in solidarity with Ukraine.

Magnolia Wang stands on an outdoor viewing point with HUP in the background illuminated in green and purple lights. — Magnolia Wang, a junior biology major, led a light-up initiative for international Rare Disease Day. (Image: Penn Medicine News)

The Pavilion building has two segments equipped with LED lights: the roofline of the 15th floor and the roofline of the mechanical towers in the center of the building, known as the mechanical penthouse. Together, they are called the Pavilion’s halo.

“The halo was incorporated into the design of the Pavilion to allow Penn Medicine to light up along with other buildings in the city,” says Alyson Cole, HUP’s associate executive director. “We are excited to join in showing our support and shine as a beacon for causes important to Penn Medicine and our community.”

On Feb. 28, the lights switched to blue, green, pink, and purple—the colors of the National Organization for Rare Disorders—for international Rare Disease Day, in recognition of people with rare conditions and the need for equity and access to medical treatments.

Magnolia Wang, a junior biology major at Penn’s College of Arts and Sciences, led that light-up initiative in partnership with Stephanie Byers Asher, associate director of genetic counseling for Penn Medicine’s division of Translational Medicine and Human Genetics.

“I was eager to raise awareness for NAM and the rare disease community in my home campus and local community,” Magnolia says. “It was truly exciting to be one of the first ‘light up’ organizations on the new hospital building.”

In March, the halo turned blue and yellow, the colors of the Ukrainian flag, joining landmarks around the world showing support for the nation and people of Ukraine following Russia’s invasion. The act of solidarity coincided with a fundraising campaign in which the University of Pennsylvania and Penn Medicine matched employees’ contributions to raise more than $300,000 toward relief efforts for Ukrainians.