Construction at Aspen Valley Hospital goes vertical
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Deborah Breen, President & CEO Aspen Valley Hospital Foundation
Building extraordinary healthcare in Aspen is a balance between clinical expertise, services, programs, people and bricks and mortar. In the past few columns, I have focused a lot on the “invisible architecture” — the exceptional skill level of our clinical and non-clinical teams and the diversity of our programs and services. Today, I am focusing on the “visible architecture.” We have certainly seen a lot of progress on the construction these past few months.
The foundation is set. The basement floor is poured. And just yesterday, we swung a very important piece of steel into place: the steel that is adorned with over 100 signatures and special messages from staff, physicians, paramedics, volunteers and contractors on the job at Aspen Valley Hospital.
You could feel the excitement that was shared amongst the entire AVH family as the crane moved the massive beam into place. They all knew they would forever be a part of Aspen Valley Hospital’s history. This was a significant moment for all of us.
To commemorate this construction milestone, we honored our entire team at both a celebratory breakfast and lunch catered by our wonderful Castle Creek Café (there are absolutely no jokes about “hospital food” here at AVH, and if you have ever had the blueberry pancakes or turkey pot pie, you know what I am talking about!). This was a pivotal day for us, as “going vertical” on the west wing meant we were one important step closer to opening our new Resnick Family Emergency Department, diagnostic imaging and surgical services.
Going hand in hand with this extraordinary building project is an equally ambitious fundraising campaign. I continue to see incredible support from our internal and external communities. Just last week, Haselden Construction, our general contractor, rallied support from many of their subcontractors, and then matched those contributions. It’s that kind of support, pride and ownership that we continue to see. Everyone wants to be a part of the progress and that perpetuates others to be involved.
The day also marked the official launch of our employee and physician giving campaigns. We are seeing unprecedented support from these groups — including the first six-figure gift from our emergency physician group and employee participation at three times the national average!
Once again, I am truly humbled and honored to work alongside such an extraordinary and generous group of people. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart. Your contributions go far beyond monetary gifts each and every day. While the steel may hold up the building, our people are what hold up our high standards and integrity and ensure our patients always come first.