On a frozen night in February 1997, 15,000 of West Lincoln Memorial Hospital’s closest friends gathered for a candlelight vigil at Grimsby Secondary School.
And the facility stands today as a result.
Today, medical officials and many local residents see Hamilton Health Sciences’ decision to close the ORs at WLMH as an equally menacing hurdle for the community to clear if it is to ever get to the long-promised rebuild.
“I remember our approach and strategy well,” said Dr. Denise Marshall, who was a member of the original Save The Hospital committee and is set to coordinate a new mission to rally the public.
“While what was at play then was politics, and is now and has been for some time, we built a response not based on politics but community values,” says Marshall.
Those interested in supporting this initiative can attend a kick-off meeting Wednesday night, Oct. 24, at Trinity United Church starting at 7:30 p.m.
Marshall said there is a small window of time to affect a change in thinking with an HHS board meeting set for Dec. 6.