A large crowd was on hand for the Friday afternoon, May 19, dedication of the new Tallahatchie General Hospital and Extended Care Facility courtyard, and the vibe was one of shared thankfulness and joy.
The more than 15,000-square-foot space features an ornate gazebo with 850 square feet under roof and a covered patio of 940 square feet.
The green space is a setting in which patients of the hospital, residents of the nursing home and employees of both facilities may gather for activities, parties, religious services and singings, or just to sit quietly and enjoy the lush serenity of the outdoors.
TGH Administrator Jim Blackwood recounted the transformation of this previously mundane, undeveloped grassy area, totally encircled and closed off to the outside world by exterior walls of the hospital and two nursing home wings.
“It really is a remarkable completed project, and it’s something to be really, really proud of,” he noted. “I’m extremely proud of it.”
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Thoughts of taking this green space that “was not really usable due to the topography and the drainage,” according to Blackwood, and converting it to a space that could be utilized by staff and nursing home residents, emerged shortly after he became TGH administrator in early 2012.
It was that year that a landscape architect was hired to prepare some conceptual drawings and to gather some preliminary cost estimates.
However, the figures were “much, much higher than any of us thought,” Blackwood noted, and the project was put on a back burner.
About this time, the Tallahatchie General Hospital Medical Foundation was reconstituted and began attracting more members and donations.
"...We continued to work," he added. "The foundation continued to grow, the hospital continued to grow.
Blackwood credited one of the hospital’s bankers, Keith Mitchell, for making the connection with Hayes Branscome of Grenada, trustee of The James M. Robertson Jr. Trust, created by the late longtime Grenada Banking System executive vice president. The system, now a part of Regions, owned the Bank of Charleston and the Bank of Sumner, giving it strong Tallahatchie County roots.
Blackwood said the courtyard vision was shared with Hayes, and the trust made “a very generous contribution.”
After Friday’s program, Branscome was asked to comment on the courtyard’s outcome, noting, “We couldn’t be more pleased. It’s first class and should have been first class, because these people are first class.”
Given the option, many TGH-ECF employees also began making automatic payroll contributions to the Medical Foundation, noted Blackwood.
"With every payroll, they made a small contribution to the Medical Foundation," he said. "You would just be amazed how, over time, that money will grow. And it did grow. But we still weren't in a position to have surplus funds where we had a comfort level that we would be able to get this done."
In the fall of 2021, longtime TGH chairman of the board Gerry Speir suggested that Blackwood approach local resident Patti Gregory, trustee of The Karen and Maynard Davis Trust, who had been known to award funds from the trust to local 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations.
Karen and Maynard Davis were friends of Patti and her husband, Ken, and they often came down from their home in Nashville, Tennessee, to be with the Gregorys in Charleston. "They would come to visit, to hunt, fish, ride four-wheelers, and they enjoyed coming here," said Ken. "They loved being here."
Karen died in 2013, and Maynard in 2018, and Patti Gregory became trustee of the Davises' sizable estate.
After several conversations between Blackwood and the Gregorys, Patti agreed to make a $100,000 donation from the Davis Trust to the Medical Foundation, creating the financial comfort level to push the more than $400,000 courtyard project forward.
“It was just a blessing to be able to contribute to this,” said Ken Gregory.
With funding in place, hospital officials began making necessary preparations for the launch of the project.
"We got to work and reached out to folks who were able to put this together, and it is what you see today," Blackwood noted.
Marty Hardy, of Hardy and Associates, was hired as architect. Timbo Sandifer, of Timbo’s Construction, was named general contractor. Trent Rhodes was brought aboard as landscape architect.
Work on the site began in late summer 2022 and concluded a month or so ago.
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During his remarks Friday, Blackwood said the gazebo/pavilion in the courtyard is dedicated in honor of the Robertson Trust, while the courtyard in its entirety is dedicated to the Davis Trust.
He voiced special appreciation to members of the Charleston Magnolia Garden Club, who provided guidance on the selection of plants for use in the landscaping.
"All the plantings and all the landscaping, somebody had to make some decisions along those lines and had to provide some advice on what grows and what doesn't grow, and what you can maintain and what you can't maintain, and so the Charleston Magnolia Garden Club was integral," said Blackwood. "We couldn't have done that without them."
He noted that the courtyard was a “team effort” and involved “contributions by many, many people.”
Blackwood pointed out that all donations to the project were funneled through the Medical Foundation, explaining, “The Foundation is there to bridge a gap when there are things that the hospital simply can’t do because of our reimbursement methodology or because of how we’re organized under statute, so our donors to the Foundation make that a reality. And we just appreciate your support.”
He directed his final remarks to nursing home residents, hospital patients and the entire TGH-ECF staff: “This is our gift to you,” he said. “We hope that it brings a smile to your face. We hope it improves your days, day in and day out. We hope that it improves the quality of your day. We did this for you. We love you. You are the heart and soul of this place.”
William McKellar, chairman of the Medical Foundation board, performed the ceremonial ribbon-cutting to close the formal program, after which refreshments from the dietary department were made available in the patio area.
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Jan Maddox, administrator of the ECF nursing home, said the courtyard is a “wonderful” addition for residents.
She said 30 rooms — eight hospital and 22 nursing home rooms — look out onto the courtyard.
“All the windows around this area, the residents can see out here. If they can’t get out here, they can see it, they can watch,” Maddox noted.
She predicted the courtyard will be “awesome” for birthday parties and other events, such as family get-togethers for the residents.
“We’ve had to make do with a dining room that is used both for dining and for parties for the residents,” Maddox said. “That room is not that big, and when you get families and stuff, it’s packed. Now we have a huge area, and it’s nice and it’s safe, and that’s the biggest thing.”
She pointed out that the courtyard features a gardening nook outfitted with large planter boxes of two heights — some low, for wheelchair accessibility, and some higher for standing while gardening.
“The residents have been wanting this,” Maddox noted. “If they want to plant vegetables, they can, but I imagine it’s probably going to be mostly flowers.”
The courtyard does not presently have a water feature, but she said the addition of a fountain is being discussed.
"I'm sure we will be doing that at some point," Maddox added.
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During last week's program, several people talked about the impressiveness of the courtyard project, in relation to the size of the Charleston medical facilities.
Joe May, pastor of First Baptist Church of Charleston, offered the opening prayer.
"Thank you for these facilities," he began. "So many communities have nothing. Some cities do not have anything as good as what we're in today. We thank you for the gifts that made this possible. We thank you for the staff that works with our residents. We thank you for our residents, who allow us to be a part of their lives through the teaching of Sunday school, church worship and just having good fellowship. We ask you, Father, that you help us to help others to see the beauty of our Lord Jesus Christ. For it's in His name I pray, amen."
Maddox, a native of Holmes County who has worked in Charleston for 10 years, suggested that the courtyard is just the latest jewel in the crown of the TGH-ECF facilities.
"I tell people all the time, Tallahatchie, Charleston, does not have any idea what you have here," she noted, while standing in the courtyard. "There's no little towns that have this: that have a Wellness Center, that have this nice of an area, that have this nice a facility, and the staff here that cares. You can't find that, and I've worked in three different nursing homes in three different towns."
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One of the first special events planned for the new courtyard, according to TGH-ECF Chief Operating Officer Buddy McRae, will be a Friday, June 16, pre-Father’s Day cookout.
"I am very excited about this first big event," McRae noted in remarks before the courtyard ceremonies. "We're going to do a big Father's Day cookout for all the dads. We’re going to have hamburgers, hot dogs and even nonalcoholic beer for all of our residents who are dads, because we just want them to have a Father’s Day cookout."
McRae said children of ECF dads are likely to be invited to share in the event.
