I am Paul Stewart, the president and chief executive officer of your community medical center. And I am very glad you could be with us here today. I am humbled by your being here. It is tremendous response to see our new “house.” It’s because of you that we are here.
With your help and support our “Vision of the Future” has arrived. You represent the people we serve – our community – our friends and our neighbors –it’s because of you we have this facility. And what a facility it is too! When you see it, please pay special attention to the details – the textures, the colors, the materials –
the way the design is just “right” in so many ways – the subtle things that make you appreciate how this facility will create a soothing, healing environment for our patients.
But more on that later.
First, let me say, it’s been quite a journey getting to where we are today. What you see before you has been more than five years in the making, from original idea to final product. It hasn’t always been an easy journey, but I think it’s always been the right journey for the right reasons – which is one of the underlying principals that guided the teams over the months – the years! – they followed the guiding star of “doing the right thing because it’s the right thing to do.” I believe they’ve done a marvelous job and – when you see it up close – I think you’ll agree with me.
Who are some of those people who made it all work? There are literally dozens of people who gave – who continue to give -- their best to make this project possible. I can’t possibly take the time to mention by name everyone who is deserving of our thanks, but I do want to share my personal gratitude with some of them: Neal Eberlein and Jean Phillips – Neal and Jean volunteered to be the capital campaign co-captains – the “faces” of the effort to raise 10-million dollars for the project. (We’re still accepting donations, by the way!)It was a huge project and they both dedicated themselves to the task and gave up a great deal of personal time to help us.
This medical center would not function – could not function – without the dedication and commitment of more than 100 physicians in our community – medical and surgical specialists who have dedicated their lives to healing others.
I want to recognize, as representatives of these fine physicians – and ask that they stand or wave if present: Dr. Kathy Bakke, who was medical staff president at the time the decision was made to proceed with this new facility; Dr. Ed McClure, immediate past president of the medical staff; Dr. Larry Cohen, current medical staff president; and Dr. Greg Sindmack, president-elect.
As representatives of the vast and diverse interests of our medical community, they have helped guide us to where we are today.We are grateful to them and to all of our medical staff members, for their dedication to their professions and their community.
All of “Team ICAP” – ICAP stands for Inpatient Care Area Project – there were at times some five or six dozen people on that team at one time or another – staff, doctors, nurses, designers, community members – all making sure we did the right thing for the right reasons. They helped us make sure our new building took care of the entire patient -- physically, emotionally, spiritually -- as well as the families and loved ones of the patients who come to us in need.
There are some people on that team who deserve special recognition: Laura Limb, one of our nurse managers, has been with us all along the way to make sure we saw the nursing perspective; Larry Howard – who retired in February after 42 years working here beginning in the engineering department. Larry was our “owner’s representative” for this project and Leslie Flick – our vice president for support services who has put her “signature” on more than just documents in this project.
Klamath Falls architects Tom and Pari Pedersen and the architects at Ankrom-Moisan, especially Stewart Ankrom and Jeff Los, along with the rest of their fine staff.
The whole Skanska USA crew – the prime contractor on the job – and especially Jim Link, Dan Johnson, Jeff Fisher, Bob Mathison and Doug Hallstrom who managed the day-to-day operations.
Of course a project of this magnitude needed support from the medical center’s board of directors – The Board of Directors is our literal link to the community -- volunteers who give back to the community by helping guide the policies that people like me and others here follow so we can help create health in the community. Many of them are here with us today and I’d like them to stand, or wave, and be recognized – John Bell, Rod Wendt, Linda Turner, Linda Weider, Kermit Houser, Dr. Wendy Warren, Dr. Larry Cohen, Dr. Greg Sindmack, and Barney Simonsen. These individuals donate many hours of their time overseeing the operation of your community medical center. We are grateful for their service and dedication to our community’s health and well-being.
I’d like to especially recognize the current Board Chairman, John Bell. Long-time board Chairman Dick Ledgerwood played a key part in the deliberations leading to the decision to create the new hospital you see here. This past December, after 16 years of service, Dick retired from the Board of Directors. Dick – my personal thanks and the gratitude of the community for all you’ve done for us.
I also want to thank Linda Turner, another of our board members, for her long-time, ongoing support and her special perspective. As I mentioned, the board is our connection to the communities we serve – the link to who we are and where we need to go. All of the members of the MWMC Board of Directors are also members of our Foundation Board, along with 8 other community representatives. Linda serves as the chairperson of the Foundation Board. Besides being a wife, mother, and grandmother, Linda brings an extra dimension to that -- she also is a Guild volunteer and like others in the Guild, she adds value to the medical center and the community through volunteerism and fund raising.
Many of the features you’ll see in the new medical center – and some things you may not see – are things intended to help patients – often by helping the people who care for patients. Because, while having a new building is nice, at the end of the day, a hospital is not just a building – it is a group of people who come together and devote their time, their energy and their talents to serving others.
Our employees are what make our medical center great. They have done a fabulous job of caring for our patients, often in awkward, cramped rooms and nursing units.
I have often referred to our new medical center as the most significant investment in healthcare the area has seen in more than four decades. This new hospital builds upon the past -- a rich legacy of community giving – donations of time, talent, and finances towards creating better health. Because of the efforts of many who have gone before us, we drink today from wells that we did not dig – we eat the fruit from trees we did not plant. We are grateful for their vast contributions to making our medical center what it is today.
And with the new building, a new name. The medical center’s previous name reflected the considerable community contributions of Mr. Merle West. And I want to be perfectly clear: The new name is by no means intended to diminish anything he did for the medical center or for the Klamath Basin. His generosity has left a legacy that will give back to this community forever. But – as Dick and Linda noted -- our medical center is an asset for all the people in the communities in our region.
It is an investment of – and in – the human spirit.
The new medical center is possible because of the investment – the generous support in time and talent and, yes, financial donations – of people in all the communities we serve – the investment of “self” that makes us who we are, that makes the Klamath Basin so special. Most of us live in this region because we enjoy the beautiful surroundings – an abundance of outdoor beauty that inspires, that soothes, that fosters a feeling of energy and good health. We’re blessed to have at our fingertips one of the most beautiful natural wonders in the country – Crater Lake – and also two wilderness areas in the Cascade Mountains with an abundance of lakes and streams – all set under 300 days of sunshine a year.
When you step into the new medical center, you will appreciate how our new philosophy is part of the building’s design. You will find in our new building a deliberate connection to nature and natural resources -- things like wood and water, plants and trees, light and stone. Like the generosity and “can-do” spirit of the people who live here, they represent the resilience and the strength that is Klamath Country. Our new medical center uses natural materials to bring the outside in – to create a soothing, healing environment intended to take care of the entire person – body, mind and spirit.
There also is a deliberate connection in our new name to our geographic region: clear skies and abundant lakes -- things that connect us socially -- things that connect us spiritually. The new name accentuates that and it honors everyone who over the years have helped the medical center grow and thrive. It honors the contributions they have made – monetary contributions, the contributions of volunteering, the contributions of support at every level -- we appreciate them all.
So what is the new name? Ladies and gentlemen, let me present to you …
Sky Lakes Medical Center!
And with our new name comes a refined philosophy? It’s seen in the “tag line” that accompanies the name– Life : Healing : Peace. It is who we are – it is what we do – it is our promise to the people we serve -- the people who need us – every day.
Thank you for all you do for your community and your medical center, and my sincere gratitude for your continuing support of our medical mission and our promise of Life:Healing:Peace.
Please come on in and see your new Sky Lakes Medical Center!