Community invited to statue unveiling set for April 14

On Sunday, April 14, community members are invited to attend a brief ceremony and statue unveiling at HSHS St. Anthony’s Memorial Hospital, commemorating the 75th anniversary of the St. Anthony Hospital fire. The ceremony will be held at 2 p.m. starting at the hospital’s main entrance on Maple Street. The statue to be unveiled is near the hospital’s healing garden by the Prairie Heart Institute entrance.will be held at 2 p.m. near the hospital’s healing garden by the Prairie Heart Institute entrance on Maple Street. Please bring a lawn chair for seating. In the case of inclement weather, the ceremony will be moved to the hospital’s Auditorium.

The statue of a nurse holding a baby was commissioned by the Effingham Retired Volunteer Firefighters Association (ERVFA) to memorialize the victims of the fire, and honor those who bravely responded to fight the fire as well as those who helped raise funds to rebuild the hospital afterwards. 

The brief ceremony will include remarks from HSHS St. Anthony’s President and CEO Chad Markham; Effingham Mayor Mike Schutzbach; and Nick Althoff and Jim Wolters from the Effingham Retired Volunteer Firefighters Association. Father Adam Prichard, hospital chaplain, will also offer a blessing of the statue. 

The not-for-profit ERVFA has raised the funds for the statue through private donations and a $15,000 donation from the City of Effingham. Donations to help cover the cost of the statue are still being accepted. Contributions can be mailed to the ERVFA at P.O. Box 1183, Effingham, IL 62401 or send donations to a special savings account at Dieterich Bank.

Photo caption: Rendering of the statue from Jamie Stang Ellis of Stang Arts.