Northern unveils Linda’s Healing and Prayer Garden

Despite the cool weather for the Oct. 18 ceremony, the event was well attended by Northern Regional Hospital staff, Board of Trustees, volunteers, local business partners, contributors, and local dignitaries from our community.

Robin Hodgin, senior vice president of patient services and chief nursing officer, opened the ceremony, explaining that Northern Regional Hospital has been a vital part of the community for more than 65 years and continues to provide quality patient care serving more than 250,000 patients annually. She shared her excitement about seeing the project come to life and noted that the Healing and Prayer Garden will offer a calming environment that will benefit the physical and mental health of our skilled nursing residents, our staff, and visitors.

Chris A. Lumsden, hospital president and CEO, and primary contributor to the project, shared the vision and purpose of the Healing and Prayer Garden just before unveiling its full name. Dedicated to his wife of 41 years, the Garden has been named Linda’s Healing and Prayer Garden.

“Our family thought that this would be great way to honor Linda by naming this Healing and Prayer Garden after her for many the lives that she too has favorably touched during her lifetime,” said Lumsden.

The garden is located at Entrance C of the hospital and features flowers, plants, and red maple trees, with several benches for visitors to sit and enjoy the flora and sounds of the rock and boulder fountain. The construction and execution of the garden plan was done by Superior Greenery along with Lambert Electric and Marketing. The plant operations staff of Northern Regional Hospital put in many hours assisting,

After the official unveiling, four of Northern’s Skilled Nursing residents, Shirley Crabb, Lucy Lewis, Veda Payne, and Karen Tucker, served as grand marshals for the event and led visitors into the garden for the first time.

Healing and Prayer Gardens are designed to provide a place of refuge and promote healing in patients, families, visitors, and staff. The idea of the Healing and Prayer Garden at Northern was first presented to the executive leadership team by Lumsden. In four short months, his vision became a reality. Linda’s Healing and Prayer Garden is viewed as an important tribute for the entire hospital team who allowed Northern Regional Hospital to shine brightly during the pandemic.

During the ceremony, Chris Lumsden announced that Tina Beasley, volunteer services manager and previously the Northern Regional Foundation administrative assistant, and one of the primary coordinators of the garden project, has been promoted to be the executive director of Northern Regional Foundation.

In her remarks, Beasley noted, “I am proud to say that Linda’s Healing and Prayer Garden was fully funded by private contributions matched by funds from Northern Foundation. As we began to invite others to support our vision through the fundraising process, we were overwhelmed by the generosity and giving spirit of our own employees and our community partners. We are so thankful to every person that chose to invest in our idea for this project. What a blessing it is for Northern Regional Hospital to be able to provide something so meaningful and so special to our community.”

“No doubt, many people will visit the Healing and Prayer Garden for different needs. Some will be hurting, some will be sick, some will be facing difficult diagnoses, some will be facing the death of a loved one, but they will all be seeking a place of refuge where they can take a moment to stop and breathe during difficult times. Linda’s Healing and Prayer Garden will offer that place of refuge for patients, families, visitors, and staff to reflect, and refuel during hard times. It will serve our organization and our community well for many years to come.”

A giving tree plaque in the shape of a tree by the garden notes the names of donors and memorial donations on “leaves” on the tree and the rocks surrounding it. Contributions to Linda’s Healing and Prayer Garden are ongoing. For questions about how to donate, contact Tina at 336-783-8196 tbeasley@wearenorthern.org.