For 75 years Hood River’s hospital has been looking after the community’s health; but many people don’t realize that the hospital’s health has also depended entirely on the community.

“The only reason Hood River has a hospital is because it is supported by the community,” Tim Simmons said during his tenure as chief executive officer from 1988-98. “The hospital will only be as good as this community wants it to be.”

It was a group of community members — doctors — who decided Hood River needed a hospital in 1905, and opened Cottage Hospital, a wooden building on Oak Street.

Nearly 20 years later, when the building was declared structurally unsafe by the fire marshal, it was the community that organized to form the Hood River Hospital Association, with the purpose of building a new community hospital to replace Cottage Hospital.

Fund raising began for funds for a new hospital and to provide an interim facility until the new building became a reality. Money to repair Cottage Hospital was raised by selling memberships to the Association, and fund raising continued after it reopened.

About seven years later the Association had raised enough money to begin construction on the new hospital, including a sizeable donation by Miss Anna Spring, a valley resident. The City of Hood River deeded land on 13th and May streets to the Association, and work began in 1931.

The new 25-bed hospital opened its doors in 1932. After World War II, Hood River’s population began to increase with the influx of service men and women making their homes in the valley. The facility was expanded from 25 to 46 beds. But by the 1950s, the facility had already outgrown its patient load.

The community again came to the rescue when they gave generously to a fund-raising campaign for a new addition, which would enlarge the facility to a 50-bed hospital. In response to those generous donations, the name of the facility was officially changed to Hood River Memorial Hospital.

A cycle was forming: every two to three decades the hospital outgrew its space and an expansion was necessary to keep pace with the needs of patients and technological advancements.

In the 1980s community donations made possible the construction of new patient care wings. In the 1990s the hospital added a new family birthing center and the Ray T. Yasui Dialysis Center.

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Now another much-needed expansion and renovation is about to begin, and a new fund-raising campaign is gearing up to fund it.

Providence Hood River Memorial Hospital plans a new wing on the east side of the building, with a new entrance and lobby; expansion of the Family Birth Center; consolidation of the radiology department; and a short stay surgery department; as well as renovations to the existing structure.

At the hospital’s 75th anniversary party Saturday Jim Clair, fund-raising campaign chairman, unveiled “The One Campaign,” a $3.5 million effort to raise funds for modernization and expansion of patient services and facilities, an expansion of clinical education programs and an expansion of the hospital’s free community outreach.

“You’ve heard some amazing stories today, of how through our 75 years, one moment at a time, one person at a time, one victory at a time and with one gift at a time, so many have made a difference,” he said. “It is our legacy to continue to build a healthier community and we will need your help to do so.

“We must ensure that Providence Hood River Memorial Hospital is prepared to meet the demands of our growing Columbia River Gorge community,” he said.

“Today, more than ever, community support makes the difference between a good hospital and a great one. With your support, we will continue to provide you with exceptional care, close to home.”

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