March 1, 2017 | Allen Van Driel, CEO
We were pleased with the turnout for our ceremonial groundbreaking last Thursday. As I had jokingly predicted, the weather turned out much more seasonal than it had been (though not as cold or wet as the next day)! You gotta love springtime in the Midwest. Nearly 80 degrees on Wednesday, and about 40 degrees colder with a stiff northeast breeze on Thursday. So if any of the foks in the pictures look chilled, it’s because it was COLD.
The first picture shows the members of the Hospital Board of Trustees with the County Commissioners. To my left in the picture are Hospital Trustees Jim Sweat and Bruce Hardacre, County Commissioners Art Befort and Tom James, Hospital Trustees Kenton Weltmer and Bret Strine, and County Commissioner Roger Allen. Hospital Board member Dr. Joe Barnes was out of town and unable to join us.
The second picture shows the Public Building Commission Board of Directors with the County Commissioners. From the left are PBC Board members John George, Ron Rahjes, Burke Phelps, and Gary Jepson, along with County Commissioners Art Befort, Tom James and Roger Allen. PBC Board member Ron Griffith was out of town and unable to join us.
The third picture shows members of the Medical Staff and Hospital Leadership team. From the left are Tammy Windscheffel, APRN, Dr. Leah Wiehl, Dr. Hannah Haack, Dr. Stacey Dimitt, Dr. Ferrill Conant, CFO Viola Babcock, Chief Nursing Officer Sarah Ragsdale, and me. We’re all smiling but you can see the effect of the wind on the hairdos. Mine looked as good as ever. Dr. Justin Overmiller was out of town and unable to join us for the ceremony. We were pleased that Dr. Wiehl, who will join Smith County Family Practice in August, was in town and joined us for the event.
After the cold photo op, we all adjourned to the Srader Center, where it was MUCH warmer. There we enjoyed cookies and drinks while we discussed the plans for the new facility with those in attendance. We thank all who joined us. If you were unable to be present for the event, the plans for the new facility will soon be on display in the hospital lobby. Actual construction on the new building will begin in about two weeks, and is expected to continue for about 18 months. I’ll conintue to share details of the construction progress periodically. As construction begins, it is important to point out that for safety reasons the area will be fenced and will be a true “hard hat area”. Visitors will be allowed into the site only by arrangement while construction is underway. We do expect to be able to share photos, some taken by drone, from the site to show construction progress. Stay tuned – we’re underway!