[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 98 (Tuesday, June 11, 2024)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E612]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             RECOGNIZING PETERSON HEALTH'S 75TH ANNIVERSARY

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. CHIP ROY

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 11, 2024

  Mr. ROY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Peterson Health in 
their seventy-fifth year of serving the Texas Hill Country. The 
community is forever grateful to Hal and Charlie Peterson, two brothers 
who envisioned a full-service hospital in Kerrville, Texas. The 
Petersons' efforts began in 1944 by establishing the Hal and Charlie 
Peterson Foundation with an initial donation of one hundred dollars. 
Three years later, the Foundation board green-lit construction of a 
hospital for ``the benefit of the people of the Hill Country in 
general.'' The brothers started building on their land at Sidney Baker 
and Water Streets in Kerrville. Named for their father, the Sid 
Peterson Memorial Hospital opened its doors on July 3, 1949. I include 
in the Record an excerpt from the Petersons' opening ceremony speech 
that day:

       ``And so here it is; it's yours to use. If it will ease a 
     little the sufferings of the sick and injured; if it will 
     help a little to mend their broken bodies; if it will provide 
     a place where the next generation--and the next--can enter 
     this world with the best of care and attention, and if it can 
     do these things at a minimum of expense to those who must be 
     patients, then our purpose in building it and giving it to 
     the Hill Country community has been well-served.''
       It was a world-class facility, the first in America to have 
     a central air conditioning system. Another groundbreaking 
     feature was the intercom system that connected each patient's 
     bed to the nurse's station. In 1969, the hospital underwent 
     extensive upgrades and increased bed capacity to eighty-six. 
     A six-million-dollar expansion plan was completed in 1985, 
     including a new Surgical Annex. The hospital became 
     independent from the Hal and Charlie Peterson Foundation five 
     years later. At the turn of the millennium, medical air 
     transport services were added to San Antonio and Austin.
       In 2008, the hospital changed locations to the new Peterson 
     Health campus, complete with a brand-new hospital building. 
     It was the only hospital in Texas to be named a Top 20 Rural 
     Community Hospital by the National Rural Health Association. 
     A groundbreaking ceremony was held in 2022 for the Amanda and 
     J. David Williams Surgery Center which will expand surgical 
     capacity by 25% and procedure rooms by 50%. Congratulations 
     to CEO Cory Edmondson and the entire staff on seventy-five 
     years of service to the Hill Country. I applaud Peterson's 
     stated mission of ``maintaining their status as an 
     independent, private, nonprofit health system.''

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