From a mighty oak . . . a new clinic grows
by Karin L. Nauber
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| A large crowd gathered at the groundbreaking for the new clinic in Bertha. |
"From a little acorn, a mighty oak grows." It's an old saying and not one without meaning for the city of Bertha.
Imagine the scene: perhaps close to 100 years ago a little acorn was dropped by a squirrel gathering nuts for the winter. The acorn was abandoned by the squirrel and within the fullness of time began to send shoots down into the ground and up toward the sky.
The sapling, unfettered by development, grew to be a young tree nurtured only by nature and admired by the few settlers in Bertha.
As the tree grew it became somewhat of an icon in the city as it, too, grew.
Now the mighty oak which stands in the park across from the Star Bank building will be taken down to allow for a new kind of growth, that of the Bertha Medical Clinic which has also been a long-time friend in the city.
Protests to save the tree did not fall on deaf ears, and, according to Bertha's mayor, Bob Larson, the city will be using the bottom eight feet of the tree to carve a statue of a bear, the symbol of the local school's sporting teams. Another section will be preserved and hung on the wall in the new clinic to serve as a reminder of the mighty oak which once stood in its place.
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A groundbreaking ceremony was held on the site on Thursday, October 4 with approximately 50 people in attendance including representatives from Congressman Collin Peterson's office, Senator Norm Coleman's office and the Minnesota Director of the United States Department of Agriculture Rural Development Steve Wenzel. There were also attendees from Tri-County Hospital, including CEO Dennis Miley, as well as members from the board of directors of both the clinic and the hospital. Additionally, several from the local clinic were in attendance, several from the community of Bertha, a KSAX cameraman as well as the Independent News Herald.
The clinic is being built by Tri-County Hospital which operates the hospital in Wadena and clinics in Bertha, Henning, Ottertail and Sebeka.
The hospital was awarded $700,000 in funding from USDA Rural Development for the project. The funding comes from Rural Development's Community Facilities program which finances essential community buildings and vehicles. A direct loan of $500,000 comes from USDA Rural
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| From left to right, Jeanette Coleman, Tri-County Hospital Governing Board treasurer and Bertha Medical Clinic Advisory Committee member; Matt Kittleson, Senator Norm Coleman's office; Jolene Johannes, Tri-County Hospital Governing Board president; Luther Nervig, Tri-County Hospital Governing Board member; Dale Hendrickson, Tri-County Hospital Governing Board secretary; Dennis Miley, Tri-County Hospital Administrator; observe as USDA Rural Development State Director Steve Wenzel signs the $700,000 check. |
Other funding sources include a Minnesota Department of Health grant for $25,000, land donated by the city of Bertha for the new site (value estimated at $15,000) and Tri-County Hospital internal reserves of $60,000.
"Tri-County Hospital provides quality and modern healthcare options in rural Minnesota," said Wenzel. "Rural healthcare is a major part of the proposed 2007 Farm Bill and it's great to showcase a project like this one."
One of the initiatives proposed in the 2007 Farm Bill calls for $1.6 billion in loan guarantees to remodel all of the 1283 rural critical-access hospitals in the nation. Minnesota has 79 rural critical access hospitals and Tri-County is one of them.
"We are pleased to receive the loan from USDA which will allow us to build a new clinic that is twice the size of our existing clinic in Bertha," said Miley. "Tri-County Hospital is committed to the future of healthcare in Bertha and the surrounding area. It's an investment we believe in, and we thank the community of Bertha for their support in this building project."