Officials celebrate JRMC

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John M. Steiner / The Sun A large crowd of people turned out Friday for the ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Jamestown Regional Medical Center. The facility officially opens on July 31.
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John M. Steiner / The Sun Jasper Schneider, state director, U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development, addresses a crowd Friday during the dedication ceremony at the Jamestown Regional Medical Center. Schneider helped secure some $46 million in funds for the $52 million project. Seated, from left, are Marty Richman, CEO of JRMC; Duane Entzminger, JRMC Foundation chairman; Gov. Jack Dalrymple, R-N.D., and Earl Pomeroy, former U.S. representative of North Dakota.
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John M. Steiner / The Sun People gain comfort in the shade Friday during a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Jamestown Regional Medical Center.

Talk about it

As staff and patients prepare for the final stages of the move to their new facility, the Jamestown Regional Medical Center hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony Friday to celebrate.

“This has taken a number of years of concerted effort by the board of directors, by the staff at the hospital, the congressional delegation (who) gave us great support, and it’s wonderful to see it come to fruition,” said Bill Kennedy, JRMC’s marketing director.

About 30 people and 100 yards of ribbon were involved in the ceremonial ribbon-cutting and all of the people received a pair of special commemorative scissors and a piece of the ribbon.

Approximately 300 people attended the gathering at the new hospital, many of whom had helped the $52 million project get under way in one way or another.

Gov. Jack Dalrymple and his wife, Betsy, were there, as was Earl Pomeroy, former U.S. representative for North Dakota. Current North Dakota lawmakers Sen. John Hoeven, Sen. Kent Conrad and Rep. Rick Berg all sent letters or representatives, as did former Sen. Byron Dorgan.

Many local and regional officials also attended the gathering, including Jamestown Mayor Katie Andersen and Chairman Mark Klose of the Stutsman County Commission.

The celebration kicked off with Alexis Barnick singing the national anthem while a helicopter flew into the airport’s helicopter landing pad — a feature absent at the old hospital.

Speakers during the program included Harvey Huber, chairman of the JRMC Board of Directors, Duane Enzminger, chairman of the JRMC Foundation, Martin Richman, the hospital’s current CEO, Dalrymple, Jasper Schneider, USDA Rural Development state director, Pomeroy, Andersen, Klose and Andy Peterson, president of the North Dakota Chamber of Commerce.

The transfer to the new facility should be complete by July 31, when all the patients will be moved and the emergency department will open.

“It’s a great new facility and we’re all excited about being there,” Kennedy said.

Sun reporter Kari Lucin can be reached at 701-952-8453 or by email at klucin@ jamestownsun.com

Tags: local news, news, hospital