LCW’s December 7, 2022 annual meeting was called to order at 6:30 pm by President Vanessa McClary. After board members introduced themselves, Vanessa commended outgoing Membership Chair Victoria McClary, Treasurer Sally Hegeman, and Newsletter Editor Nancy Boerner for their service on the board and then introduced new board members Tanalee Chapman, Jennifer Johnstone, and Carol Weiss-Kennedy. Sally then gave a brief summary of LCW’s finances, noting that the organization’s operating budget depends on dues and contributions from members. Philanthropic donations made by the organization are drawn from funds invested with the Bloomington Health Foundation, the Community Foundation, and Vanguard. In 2022, LCW donated a total of $41,500 to a number of different organizations (see the year-end finance report on page X for details).
Two representatives from organizations that received contributions from LCW during the year attended in the meeting. Assistant Fire Chief Tania Daffron, thanked LCW on behalf of the Bloomington Fire Department for the bright yellow-green reflective and fireproof heavy-duty multiple-season jackets it funded for the department’s more than 100 firefighters. Tania noted that the jackets were welcomed by all, as they enable the firefighters to perform their jobs in greater safety.
Stephanie Shelton from the Cancer Support Community South Central Indiana (CSCSI) presented a painting to LCW in thanks for its support of Hoosiers Outrun Cancer. Formerly sponsored by the Bloomington Health Foundation, the event is now run by CCSI, which opened its doors in Bloomington in March 2022. They now have four full-time employees and provide cancer patients and their families
with counseling and support. There are regular “Morning Joe” coffee meetings for men who have cancer, and a support group for caregivers has been started. They also offer activities such as cooking demonstrations for preparing healthy food, which have proven to be very popular. Stephanie told attendees that the organization was “incredibly grateful” for LCW’s support.
IU Health SCR President Brian Shockney and Regional Director of Strategic Integration for IU Health Bloomington Hospital Mary Ann Valenta reported on news from the South Central Region. In general, the number of Covid cases is growing again, making up 25% of total hospitalizations, but the need for ventilators and other Covid-fighting equipment has decreased. In Bedford, after the closing of
Dunn Hospital IU Health stepped in to increase the services provided at its hospital there. Shockney noted that Dunn Hospital was not alone in closing after finding itself in dire financial straits, as rural hospitals especially are closing in Indiana and other states for similar reasons. Due to the pandemic, in the SCR the cost for nurses has risen by 30.5%, increasing costs for staff on the front lines to $42
million more in 2022 than in the previous year. IU Health sees these increased wages as an investment, and they are trying to be more efficient with services so they can offer more of them in areas where they are needed, such as Bedford. They are keeping their prices the same as they try to retool. As a result, IU Health lost about $2 billion in 2022.
To help with rising healthcare costs, the IU Health Foundation has made grants to local organizations, including to:
- Southern Indiana Community Health Care in Paoli, $1.25 million over three years to establish a Recovery Engagement Center in Orange County to treat addiction and substance use disorders.
- Ivy Tech Bloomington, $500,000 over three years to hire staff and offer certification courses for medical careers in the fields of phlebotomy, electrocardiograph technician, certified clinical medical assistant, certified nursing assistant and emergency medical technician.
- Wheeler Mission in Bloomington, $243,000 over three years to remodel the Wheeler Center for Men in order to provide space for job training, behavioral health services, and medical and case management.
In Monroe County, the Community Covid group, whose members include representatives from IU Health SCR, the Monroe County Health Department, and IU, continues to meet, but now is focusing on promoting the public health legislative proposals that reflect the recommendations of Governor Holcomb’s public health task force. Indiana is 45th in the nation in the amount it spends on public health,
and even if the legislature passes full funding of the recommendations, it will only bring Indiana up to “mediocre.” Shockney urged LCW members to contact their state legislators to urge them to support the task force proposals fully.
In the last item of business, Sally Hegeman told attendees that as chair of the Scholarship Committee she “had the best job in LCW.” Thirty-one applications for scholarships were received this year, and it was clear that the applicants were working hard at their studies, at the same time as many of them also have jobs and families to care for. In their applications, students were asked to provide documentation of enrollment in their chosen accredited program, along with a copy of their grades to date and a personal statement describing their work and volunteer experience, financial need, why they chose healthcare as a profession, and their goals for the future. Four scholarships of $1500 each, sponsored by LCW and the Bloomington Health Foundation, were awarded to Kadila Adili, Emily Hawk, Cassandra Lopez, and Laura Beth Wayne. The $2500 Cecilia Wahl scholarship, sponsored by LCW and named for a former LCW president who was very active in the community and her profession, was awarded to Ishod Vasquez.
The winners were all impressive. Emily Fox was unable to attend the meeting because she was taking a final exam in Vincennes, where she is studying nursing. She comes from a rural community, and her goal is to work in one as a nurse practitioner. Kadila Adili hails from Windsor, Canada, and is studying at the IU Optometry School to become an optometrist. She has also been involved with using music education to help children with their mental health. Cassandra Lopez is working on her MA in the Speech and Hearing
Department at IU, training to become a bilingual speech and language pathologist. She is also doing research on bilingual Spanish-English children and how they help their parents deal with English-only situations.
Laura Beth Wayne, a mother of two, comes from a family of nurses and decided after a number of years as a teacher to change fields and go into nursing, too. Although she has an MA in Education, the pandemic changed her perspective and left her feeling ready for something else. While she is studying to become a nurse, she is also working at IU Health Bloomington Hospital.
Cecilia Wahl scholarship winner Ishod Vasquez’s goal is to become a radiation therapist. Sally pointed out that practitioners in that field need both an excellent background in math and physics and a talent for compassion, as radiation therapists must deal with many frightened people. Ishod is also a singer and has directed choirs that perform for events such as fundraisers and at nursing homes. He was also a tracer for Covid exposures during the worst of the pandemic. Ishod comes from a small border town at the southern tip of Texas and told attendees that “because of people like you, I have been able to do what I have so far, for which I am extremely grateful.”
Ending the meeting at 7:30 pm, Vanessa congratulated door prize winners: thanks to the Kiwanis Club of South Central Indiana, Jiamila Maimenti received a large box of Godiva chocolates, Haddie Katz a blanket for keeping warm at football games, and Jenn Johnstone a Santa bag with a Starbucks card.
Photos from the Annual Meeting
