Pictured, from left to right, are Barbara Rohner, treasurer of the St. Mary’s Hospital Auxiliary; Scott Niermann, St. Mary’s Hospital Foundation Director; Bruce Merrell, president of St. Mary’s Hospital; Dale Bassett, past president and current member of the St. Mary’s Hospital Auxiliary; Dee Dee Atteberry, president of the St. Mary’s Hospital Auxiliary; and Toni DeBernardi, past president and current member of the St. Mary’s Hospital Auxiliary. Not present for the photo was St. Mary’s Hospital Auxiliary Vice President Shirley Williams.
The St. Mary’s Hospital Auxiliary has delivered a significant portion of a financial pledge to the St. Mary’s Hospital Foundation.
The Auxiliary on Tuesday presented a check in the amount of $50,000 to Foundation Director Scott Niermann and St. Mary’s Hospital President Bruce Merrell. The money given Tuesday is more than half of the nearly $91,000 the Auxiliary has pledged to give to the hospital foundation to help advance care at the Centralia hospital.
The pledge is to cover the cost of a C-arm used for surgical procedures. It comes less than a year after St. Mary’s Hospital unveiled a new state-of-the-art intensive care unit as well as Advanced ICU care that offers round-the-clock monitoring of patients by highly trained intensivist physicians and critical care specialists.
“The St. Mary’s Hospital Auxiliary continues to amaze me with the generosity of the many men and women who give of their time and resources to help with our mission,” said Merrell. “Not only are they part of our team but they are very compassionate toward our employees, patients and visitors. We could not ask for better representation of our hospital and community.”
A C-arm is a piece of radiology equipment used in surgery on nearly a daily basis.
“This is a great example of volunteers making a real impact on hospital care, efficiency and technology,” said Niermann. “The Auxiliary’s donation is very much appreciated and an example of how giving directly impacts the quality of services provided by St. Mary’s Hospital.
In addition to the new 12-room intensive care unit and Advanced ICU care, St. Mary’s also unveiled a $1.56 million linear accelerator late last year. The work has not gone unnoticed, as the Centralia hospital won eight national awards and was part of St. Mary’s Good Samaritan receiving the Gold Award for Achievement of Excellence by Illinois Performance Excellence.
The St. Mary’s Auxiliary has been active in both volunteer hours and financial contribution to St. Mary’s Hospital, having given $55,000 toward the new ICU, naming three patient rooms and offering significant support to the hospital’s pediatric services.