I N F OR MATION, N E WS AND S UPPORT
Spirit of Giving The CHRISTUS Spohn Health System Foundation Newsletter
Cecilia Garcia-Akers (far left) and the members of the Board of Directors of the Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Foundation present Justin Doss (far right), President of CHRISTUS Spohn Health System, with a $50,000 check.
Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Foundation Presents Check for Health Center Dr. Hector P. Garcia’s spirit lives on every day at the clinic named after him. On the day that commemorated Dr. Garcia’s 105th birthday, CHRISTUS Spohn received a $50,000 gift from the Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Foundation designated to the Master Facility Plan for the Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Family Health Center. Early in January, Dr. Garcia’s daughter and son-in-law, Cecilia and Jim Akers, visited the Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Family Health Center and were deeply touched. “The patients in that beautiful facility were so happy. Seeing patients being treated equally and receiving medical treatment at the clinic, delighted me. This was my father’s lifetime work – to make sure everyone has access to medical treatment. This clinic, located down the street from my father’s old office, is his Winter 2019
legacy.” The Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Family Health Center ensures that patients continue to receive treatment at this one stop shop. Patients can have lab work performed, x-rays taken, and be seen by specialty doctors such as cardiologists, urologists, gynecologists, endocrinologists, and orthopedists. During his speech thanking the Garcia Foundation for their donation, Justin Doss, President of CHRISTUS Spohn Health System, mentioned that the number of people treated at the health center continues to grow every month. Over 100,000 prescriptions are filled at the clinic’s pharmacy each year. We thank Cecilia and Jim Akers and the Board of Directors of the Garcia Foundation for their generosity and commitment to our mission.
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CHRISTUS Spohn Lyceum
DR. HPG
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MEMORIAL FAMILY HEALTH CENTER Chapel Named After Devout Catholic
GOLDEN
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SLEDGEHAMMER CEREMONY Mother/Baby Unit Renovations Begin
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Special Ornaments for CHRISTUS Spohn Patients on Christmas Day Alice High School students proudly show their decorated ornaments at CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital Alice.
Spending the holidays in a hospital is not easy, but it helps when Associates spread good cheer with a special ornament. Each year on Christmas Day, patients who stay at any CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital, receive a decorated ornament on their breakfast tray. During the second week of December, CHRISTUS Spohn Volunteers set up a table outside the cafeteria of each CHRISTUS Spohn campus with gems, glue and pre-painted ornaments. Associates and families of patients stop by during their free time to decorate an ornament. This year we had some special guests come by our campuses to help spread some Christmas cheer by decorating their own ornaments. The Corpus Christi IceRays swung by CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi – Shoreline to visit patients and decorate ornaments alongside CHRISTUS Spohn Volunteers and Associates. “You could tell the teammates were just having a blast! They even had a little competition to see who the best decorator was,” said Julie Zuniga, Volunteer Coordinator.
At CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital Alice, Alice High School students who are in the Medical Program took time from their regular hospital shifts to stop by the table and decorate. Volunteer Director, Marissa Carrillo said, “This group of Alice High School students visit our hospital regularly as part of their health care learning curriculum. They understand our culture and mission, so it was no surprise to see their interest in helping spread holiday cheer to those who spend Christmas in the hospital.” “Years ago, we started this project as an opportunity for our Associates to take part in giving back to our patients with some crafting fun. We now have patients’ families and visitors stopping by to help with our decorating. It’s a great stress reliever, and they enjoy their visits with the volunteers,” said Marissa Carrillo. “When the ornaments are placed on the meal trays, it’s such a beautiful moment. Just knowing that the patients’ Christmas day will be a little brighter through our ornaments is what makes our Volunteers and Associates happy.
Not everyone has the opportunity to spend Christmas with their family, but we make sure patients still enjoy a little of Christmas while they are here,” said Julie Zuniga.
Corpus Christi IceRays teammates enjoy a friendly ornament decorating competition at CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi - Shoreline.
Mark Your 2019 Calendars Beeville Ladies Night Out March 5th
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National Doctors’ Day March 30th
CHRISTUS Spohn Lyceum April 9th Spirit of Giving
Marcia Marks, Vice President/Trustee and Greg Marks, Trustee of The Morris Lichtenstein, Jr. Medical Research Foundation proudly stand next to the recently installed plaque honoring their Foundation’s generous gift toward the Lichtenstein Chapel at the Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Family Health Center.
Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Family Health Center Chapel Named After Devout Catholic On December 21, 2018, The Morris L. Lichtenstein, Jr. Medical Research Foundation Trustees gathered at the Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Family Health Center for the plaque installation honoring their Foundation’s generous gift to the chapel now named the Lichtenstein Chapel. The Lichtenstein Chapel is named after Morris L. Lichtenstein, Jr., a man who was committed to improving the lives of those most in need. After Marcia Marks, Vice President of Morris L. Lichtenstein, Jr. Medical Research Foundation, and Foundation Trustees toured the state-of-the-art 43,000 square-foot facility, Mrs. Marks stated that they all felt that supporting the Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Family Health Center and the Chapel would be representative of a choice that Morris Lichtenstein, Jr. would have made. The chapel is a serene and calming space featuring work by artist Mercedes Flores-McCoy who was commissioned to create two paintings featuring
Dr. Hector P. Garcia. Frequently, patients and family visit this tranquil space and leave their petitions to receive blessings from Father Silas or Father Kizito. “We are so grateful that patients have a spiritual retreat space available to pray and reflect while they are here at the health center,” said Humberto Ramos, Director of Clinic Operations at the Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Family Health Center. “Thank you, Morris L. Lichtenstein, Jr. Medical Research Foundation, for your generosity. You truly understand the spiritual component of healing and the importance of the chapel to our health center.”
A Message From Karen In thinking about this New Year and all the wonderful happenings at CHRISTUS Spohn and all of you our amazing donors and your gifts that are making this transformation of health care possible, I was filled with Karen Bonner, gratitude for each of you. You chose VP for Philanthropy to support Spohn and are making possible wonderful state-of-the-art facilities and advanced technology, without knowing if you or anyone you know will ever need that technology or have to be admitted to this beautiful new facility on the Shoreline campus. You just gave because you want anyone and everyone who needs exceptional health care to have it—right here at home. Winter 2019
2019 will see the fruition of many of your gifts as we open the new Medical Tower with its expanded Emergency Department, four huge new Trauma Resuscitation Bays, a large ground helipad, 200 new patient rooms, three new operating rooms, two new Interventional Radiology Suites, advanced Urology equipment, lovely dining areas, a huge Graduate Medical Education Center and Simulation Lab, a rehabilitation floor, new Pathology and Pharmacy departments, a new Chapel, and a gift shop. All of us at CHRISTUS Spohn thank each of you who has contributed to this project and who has made the transformation of health care delivery a reality in 2019. This is truly your legacy.
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600 Elizabeth Street Corpus Christi, TX 78404
Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 880 Corpus Christi, TX
FOUNDATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS Leslie McClanahan, Chair Joe Henkel, Treasurer Judy K. Long, Treasurer-Elect Carol McLaughlin, Secretary Jordan Anderson, At-Large Allison Webster, At-Large Osbert Blow, MD, PhD, FACS Mary Jane Carlisle Bill Colston, Jr. Robert T. Cuevas Becky Davis Jack T. Dugan II, M.D., FAAO Regina Garcia John P. Jackson Trey McCampbell Jessica A. Morrill James Pettus Gregg Robertson Rick Rogers Elizabeth Susser Felix Tapp Richard P. Thomas Hector Villarreal Kathleen White
Foundation Board Members, physicians, Mother & Baby Committee members and CHRISTUS Spohn Associates, trade in their usual work tools for a hardhat and sledgehammer to knock down the wall of the new area in the Labor and Delivery Department.
Golden Sledgehammer Ceremony Marks Start of Mother & Baby Unit Demolition In December, board members, physicians, Mother & Baby Committee members and CHRISTUS Spohn Associates, along with friends of our healing ministry, came together to take part in a ceremonial demolition at CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi - South for the Demo Day Celebration of the Mother and Baby Floor Renovations. Everyone grabbed their safety gear and sledgehammers to help knock down part of the wall of NICU I. Generous donations given by Foundations, individuals, and companies, are enabling CHRISTUS Spohn - South to transform its Mother and Baby patient floor into an ultra-modern environment. The new renovations will offer families exceptional facilities that support the
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overall birth experience as well as the health of both mom and baby. “Moms can feel very confident that CHRISTUS Spohn - South is prepared to welcome our littlest patients on their biggest day,” said Mark Casanova, President of CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi - South. Renovations will include a new HomeAway-From-Home Room, expanded and updated nurses’ station, updated family waiting room, 24-bed Level III NICU Units, lactation room, remodeled post-partum patient rooms, physician on-call room, and state-of-the-artsecurity system. We look forward to the completion of the project and are thankful for these exciting renovations for future newborns and their families.
Ex-Officio Justin Doss, President of CHRISTUS Spohn Health System Karen Bonner, VP for Philanthropy
FOUNDATION EMERITUS MEMBERS Frank Armstrong Bettye Baria* Nancy L. Beauchamp Tom Carlisle Fielding B. Cochran* Elinor Donnell* Bruce Hawn Frank P. Horlock, Jr.* Richard King III * Joe Lewis, M.D. Lou Adele May Maureen Miller Elizabeth Nisbet Daniel A. Pedrotti Phillip M. Plant Rabbi Kenneth D. Roseman Alice Sallee Alan J. Stoner Chela Storm Kirkby Townsend Karen Urban *Deceased
Spirit of Giving