From the Heart: Regina Health Center showcases 30th anniversary celebration in recent newsletter

Friday, January 05, 2024

Tags: Regina Health Center , health care

---

The recent issue of From the Heart, the biannual newsletter of Regina Health Center, features a cover article about a 30th anniversary dinner gala that celebrated the history and accomplishments of Regina Health Center while helping raise more than $220,000 for capital project needs. The newsletter also has a recap of the annual Holy-In-One Golf Outing, an article about how the ministry's transportation department keeps things moving, a donor roll, news and event updates, and more.

Below is the text from the cover story. Read the complete newsletter here.

A Celebration 30 Years in the Making

Dinner Gala Celebrates 30 Years of Excellence while Raising $220,000 for Third-Floor Refresh

The grounds of Regina Health Center have always been a special place. They became even more so the evening of June 7 as 200 supporters gathered for a special tented dinner gala to celebrate 30 years of providing quality, mission-driven care to religious women, brothers, priests and lay people.

Attendees also gathered to honor Sister Judith Ann Karam, CSA, congregational leader for the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine and Chair of the public juridic person for the Sisters of Charity Health System. Sr. Judith Ann was instrumental in the opening of Regina Health Center in 1993 and is a recognized and respected leader in Catholic health care both regionally and nationally.

“We are so very blessed to honor the 30th anniversary of Regina Health Center, for their commitment to the care of vowed religious, priests and lay people in need of skilled nursing care in the most beautiful home of the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine,” said Janice G. Murphy, president and CEO Sisters of Charity Health System. “Sister Judith Ann Karam helped lead this important level of care, which was the first in the country. In a prayer attributed to St. Oscar Romero, ‘We plant seeds that one day will grow’ and that has been the gift to watch unfold over 30 years.”

At the event, attendees enjoyed appetizers, drinks and dinner, plus a special 30th anniversary video and presentation. In addition to being a celebration of the history and accomplishments of Regina Health Center (RHC), the event helped raise much-needed funds for capital project needs. Supporters raised more than $220,000 through sponsorships and ticket sales. The capital project needs include an overdue refresh of the third-floor assisted living area.

“Congratulations on the successful 30th anniversary gala as well as the creation of RHC to meet the unmet needs of religious congregations, diocesan priests and laity when the needs were so critical. RHC is a model of excellence and was always the first of its kind in the United States,” said Sr. Margaret Taylor, SIW. “What a blessing is seen in the collaboration among the religious congregations over many years. It's one thing to create a ministry and it's another to sustain the ministry over the long-haul, especially in the midst of a global pandemic. I pray that RHC will continue to offer its healing ministry of Jesus for generations to come. May the hopes and dream that were answered 30 years ago continue to serve the needs of countless others going forward."

The event’s honoree, Sr. Judith Ann, reflected on the importance of gathering to celebrate RHC’s 30th anniversary and the gratitude she has for everyone who has been a part of RHC’s success over the last 30 years.

“The event itself was a wonderful time to celebrate friends and family. I have always been blessed by so many from the hospitals, boards, ministries and organizations. I felt extremely honored at RHC's 30th anniversary gala because I was able to enjoy so many in one place that have served in various capacities to support many of our ministries, let alone helped us to continue meeting the needs at Regina Health Center. I could have stood there thanking everyone two more hours for all the many people who have been involved in supporting RHC and all of us.”

A Groundbreaking History
Regina Health Center was a pioneer as one of the first inter-congregational skilled nursing and assisted living facilities in the United States when it opened in 1993 in Mount Augustine, the motherhouse for the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine that was built in 1955. In the early 1990s, the Sisters raised more than $7.5 million to renovate and convert much of the facility, collaborating with 22 Catholic religious congregations. The goal was to ensure that aging women religious and priests in Northeast Ohio would receive the highest quality health care services, along with supportive programs that would keep them spiritually, mentally and socially engaged. Today, Regina Health Center continues to welcome religious women, brothers, priests and lay people who embrace our core values of spirituality and shared community life as we extend the healing mission of Jesus

Regina Health Center is a ministry of the Sisters of Charity Health System.