CHARLESTOWN, Nevis – THIS year’s Members of the Alexandra Hospital Auxiliary Society’s fund-raising event will be a luncheon on the grounds of the Charlestown Methodist Church.
According to information reaching SKNVibes, the luncheon is set for Friday, February 20 from 11:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
According to the organising committee, the proceeds would go towards purchasing an ultrasound machine. The committee promises that there would be a lot of fun, games and food, and the lunch would cost EC$20 and served between 12 noon and 2:00 p.m.
The Alexandra Hospital Auxiliary Society was formed in the late sixties by a group of ladies mainly from the USA and Canada who had made Nevis their home. Some of the first officers were Janet Platzer, Mary Byron, Margaret Lyman, and Mary Johnson. Sheila Evelyn, who is still a member of the group, was the first local person to hold office when she became treasurer in 1974.
These ladies saw the need for help at the Hospital and the then Infirmary. As a team, they spent many hours visiting residents of the infirmary and distributed reading materials among other things. Patients looked forward to these weekly visits when toiletries and other essential items were sold to the residents at a reduced cost.
Over the years, the Auxiliary has undertaken many projects. One of the projects was the financing for the removal of wooden floors from the Medical and Surgical Wards at the Hospital and replacing them with concrete and tiles. The members also supplied trucks and curtains that separate the beds on the wards. They also provided television sets, drugs for patients and helped with travel cost for those who had to seek medical attention abroad.
The Auxiliary members supplied all the materials that built the rest rooms on the ground floor for out-patients. For a short period of 18 months two persons were paid to work at the Infirmary to assist with the work load, and in 1998 the members facilitated the building of the new Pediatric Ward at the Hospital.
In 2005, 36 beds with mattresses, 36 bedside lockers and 14 over-bed tables were purchased at a cost of US$118 348.10. Last year, the Auxiliary Society members raised EC$9 000.
In past years, the fun fair annual event was held at the Government House. Members told SKNVibes that it is an event Nevisians of all walks of life look forward to.
The members have launched a membership drive. Also planned are a variety of fundraisers and fun activities for Hospital residents such as birthday parties. The Auxiliary Society can be contacted on 469-3239 or 663-4952.
