Medical center hits the jackpot

Staff report
As Norm Fandel, president of the Grow Greene County Gaming Corp., noted, this is exactly why the county wanted a casino.

With separate pledges of $100,000 — for a total of $200,000 — Wild Rose Casino and Grow Greene County have pushed the Greene County Medical Center’s $4 million capital campaign beyond its goal.

“This is the vision the board had in getting the casino in Greene County — using the funds on projects like the medical center’s,” Fandel said this week in a statement. “With revenues available on an annual basis, we are looking for projects like this to enhance and improve lives in Greene County.  

“It is a privilege, as well as rewarding, to be a part of a successful project like the medical center’s. We look forward to new projects to enhance more lives far into the future.”

The “Investing in Tomorrow’s Care” capital campaign, co-chaired by community leaders Rick Morain and John Gerken, was jump-started in early 2014 with an anonymous, $2 million gift.

To Morain’s knowledge, the $4 million campaign is the largest, non-governmental fundraising effort in Greene County history.

“This combined gift clearly shows the commitment that Wild Rose Casino and the Grow Greene County Gaming Corporation has to helping this community grow,” Medical Center CEO Carl Behne said. “We are extremely grateful for both of these gifts.”

Since 2014, an additional $2 million was raised, but it was end-of-year commitments from Wild Rose and Grow Greene County that took the campaign over its goal.

The campaign was launched in support of a major expansion and renovation project at the medical center, which is expected to be complete this summer.

Phase one was finished in September, and includes a 52,000-square-foot expansion on the east end of the medical center campus, which features a more visible and accessible ER.