Featured article in the Mount Graham Minute- May 2022!
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Mount Graham Regional Medical Center was fortunate enough to receive a generous donation from the Arcadia Chapter of The Order of the Eastern Star, a local nonprofit located in Safford. Their donation of $75,000 will be invaluable for our hospital and our community members.
The Order of the Eastern Star is a social, charitable, and fraternal organization to which both women and men can belong. It is an Order composed of people of spiritual convictions and is open to all faiths.
The Arcadia Chapter #9, located in Safford, Arizona, is one of 31 Chapters in the state of Arizona. The chapter was chartered in November 1902 in the Territory of Arizona and is thus known as a Territorial Chapter.
“We chose to donate to the hospital because we knew the hospital could affect the entire community. We wanted to help the entity that helps all of our community members,” said Margaret Ratje, Chaplain. “Rural communities are often overlooked; we want to serve those that may need it the most or maybe underserved in our community,” continued Ratje.
“This contribution wouldn’t be possible without the generous donation of Mr. Cyrus Clinton Blair and his family, who left a deed for mineral rights in Wyoming to the Harmony chapter of The Order of the Eastern Star in Willcox, where he resided until his death in 1973,” said John Ratje, Worthy Patron. “When the Harmony chapter was merged into our Arcadia chapter, we knew this money needed to go to both the Gila Valley and Willcox communities.”
Mr. Blair, a WWI veteran, spent his younger years in Wyoming as an owner and operator of the American Cattle Ranch near Kaycee, Wyoming. Mr. Blair transferred his mineral deed ownership to the Harmony Chapter located in Willcox in September of 1967. The Harmony chapter closed its doors in the fall of 2000, leaving the Arcadia chapter in Safford as the beneficiary of the mineral deed. There had been no oil production of any significance from 1967 to 2011- until fracking, a new technology for removing oil from older underground reservoirs, increased interest in older oil fields.
MGRMC’s Foundation has also voted to add $25,000 to Eastern Star’s donation to fund and pay for 4 new labor and delivery beds as well as 2 postpartum beds for MGRMC’s Obstetrics Department. These new beds will allow our new mothers to have a reliable and comfortable bed for their stay here at the hospital.
“We are so excited to have these new beds for the mothers that deliver at our hospital. These beds can be more easily broken down to support the mom in whatever position she chooses to labor in,” said Tawny DeSpain, Director of Maternity Services at MGRMC. “Our moms deserve to be comfortable while they are here in the hospital.”
The Arcadia Chapter of the Order of the Eastern star would like the community to know they are always looking for charitable members to join them in their efforts, you can email Clara Page, Secretary and Membership Committee Chairwoman, at clara.page@yahoo.com for more information.
Northern Cochise Community Hospital in Willcox will also be receiving a $75,000 donation from the Order of the Eastern Star.
Thank you, Eastern Star, for this charitable donation that will greatly impact members of our community and the care they receive at Mount Graham Regional Medical Center. Your kindness has not gone without great appreciation from our entire community.
