HSHS St. Anthony’s Memorial Hospital leaders and colleagues, Hospital Sisters of St. Francis, city officials, retired firefighters and community members joined together on April 14 to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the St. Anthony Hospital fire with a special event.
The ceremony included the unveiling of a statue of a nurse holding a baby commissioned by the Effingham Retired Volunteer Firefighters Association (ERVFA) to memorialize the victims of the fire, and honor those who bravely fought the fire as well as those who helped raise funds to rebuild the hospital afterwards. The statue’s home is near the hospital’s healing garden by the Prairie Heart Institute entrance on Maple Street. Following the unveiling ceremony, the statue was blessed by Father Adam Prichard, Hospital Chaplain.