Harbor Beach A History Dating Back to 1920
to donate the hospital to the people of Harbor Beach, adding the word “community” to the hospital’s name in 1957 and becoming a non-profit organization, still the case nearly 70 years later. By 1961, the community had acknowledged the need to improve the hospital facilities and a campaign was launched, something Scheurer Hospital would do some eight years later. The aim was to raise $150,000 to upgrade the existing hospital in Harbor Beach, while building two
additional wings. 325 people volunteered to fundraise and after a dinner at nearby Our Lady of Lake Huron Catholic Church, pledges exceeded $262,000 for the new construction, nearly $2.9 million in today’s dollars. The project was completed and dedicated on Fathers’ Day 1963, hosted by the Harbor Beach Hospital Auxiliary and presided by the President of the Board of Trustees, Dr. Arnold Hentschl (grandfather of our optometrist at Scheurer Health, Dr. Matthew Meissner). The new areas brought the total hospital capacity to 29 beds, a new operating room, kitchen, X-ray, Emergency, Obstetrics, Pharmacy and more space for all departments. Over 75% of the donations for the fundraising was given anonymously – a true testament to the community’s selfless belief in the hospital. 1971 saw a completion of the new maternity ward and surgical suite, with another campaign to build the Long Term Care unit in 1976. For the completion of the space now known as Lakeview Extended Care and Rehab, an additional $915,000 was raised by the community, the equivalent of $5.6 million dollars in 2026. The Long Term Care campaign was chaired by Burton Ramsey, grandfather of Scheurer Health’s President & CEO, Dr. Ross Ramsey. Services continued to expand over the next decades with nearby medical clinics, new diagnostic services and the merging of the Oakes Clinic, now the site of Frankenmuth Credit Union at the edge of town in Harbor Beach. Much like the story of Scheurer Health, Harbor Beach Community Hospital had a number of doctors
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THE STORY CONTINUES ON PAGE 10
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