[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 51 (Tuesday, April 20, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E559]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




CONGRATULATIONS TO SISTER MARY EILEEN WILHELM, R.S.M., ON THE OCCASION 
                           OF HER RETIREMENT

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                             HON. JO BONNER

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 20, 2004

  Mr. BONNER. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride and pleasure that I 
rise to pay tribute to Sister Mary Eileen Wilhelm, R.S.M., on the 
occasion of her retirement as President and Chief Executive Officer of 
Mercy Medical in Daphne, Alabama.
  For the past 36 years, Sister Mary Eileen has served the families of 
south Alabama with compassion, dedication, commitment and a tremendous 
amount of love.
  As a member of the Order of the Religious Sisters of Mercy, Sister 
Mary Eileen has spent her career finding and implementing the most 
effective, up-to-date methods of meeting the healthcare requirements of 
some of the neediest patients in the Gulf Coast region.
  She received her Nursing Diploma from the Providence Hospital School 
of Nursing in Mobile, her Bachelor's Degree from Mount Saint Agnes 
College in Baltimore, Maryland, and her Master's Degree in Health Care 
Administration from George Washington University in Washington, D.C. At 
the conclusion of her academic studies, Sister Mary Eileen served her 
hospital administrative residency at the Veterans Administration 
Hospital in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
  From 1959 to 1966, she served as a staff nurse, first at Saint Martin 
dePorres Hospital in Mobile, and then at Stella Maris Hospital in 
Baltimore, Maryland. She then accepted a position as Director of 
Nursing Services at Villa Mercy in Daphne, Alabama, an organization 
which over the years has developed into the modern day facility known 
as Mercy Medical.
  Along with her active involvement in the life and growth of Mercy 
Medical, Sister Mary Eileen has played a large role in the activities 
of numerous organizations in Alabama and throughout the United States. 
These include, but are certainly not limited to, membership on the 
Catholic Health Association, the St. Joseph's Health System Board of 
Trustees in Atlanta, Georgia, the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas 
(Baltimore Regional Community), the Southwest Alabama Hospital Council 
of the Alabama Hospital Association, and the Mercy Medical Board of 
Trustees.
  Additionally, Sister Mary Eileen has been named to ``Who's Who of 
American Women,'' ``Who's Who in Religion,'' and ``Who's Who in Health 
Care.'' She was a 1994 graduate of ``Leadership ALABAMA'' and currently 
serves as a member of ``Envision Mobile-Baldwin.''
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me today in recognizing 
Sister Mary Eileen Wilhelm for her tremendous contributions to the 
citizens of the First Congressional District of Alabama. The experience 
and enthusiasm she has brought to her job and the concern and 
compassion she has displayed throughout the years to everyone with whom 
she has had contact are unquestioned and unparalleled.
  She has indeed been a genuine asset both to her order and to the 
thousands of men, women and children she has assisted for over four 
decades. I am proud and honored to call her my friend, and I offer my 
heartfelt thanks and congratulations as she enters this new phase of 
her life.

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