Wrangell – On Wednesday, March 17, Lavina “Lovey” Brock of the SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC) Board of Directors was presented with the Shaman’s Apprentice mask to commemorate the successful opening of the new Wrangell Medical Center (WMC). The mask, created by Haida artist T.J. Young, was donated by Dawson Construction and Wold Architects & Engineers.
Crafted with red cedar, abalone, operculum shells and horsehair, the mask depicts a profound moment during the practice of a young Shaman. Shamans (Sgáagaa) were known to possess healing powers and bridge the gap between spiritual and natural worlds.
“Dawson is thrilled to have been able to partner with SEARHC on the Wrangell hospital, our 12th project together,” said Dawson Construction Project Engineer Caleb McGraw. “The success of the project was due to tremendous collaboration by SEARHC, Dawson, Wold A&E, and subcontractors, which led to the hospital being delivered over two months early despite challenges presented by the pandemic.”
The new 44,500 square foot WMC campus opened February 12, 2021, and features an eight-bed Acute Care wing, 14-bed Long-Term Care unit, expanded Emergency Department, integrated Primary Care services, and ancillary services including Rehabilitation, Imaging, Laboratory and Outpatient Pharmacy.
“We are honored to receive the beautiful gift from Dawson and Wold,” said SEARHC Vice President and WMC Hospital Administrator Leatha Merculieff. “Our partners really delivered on this project – for SEARHC, our staff, and the community of Wrangell.”
Minnesota-based Wold A&E was tabbed to begin the design of the new WMC in March of 2018. By April 2019, Juneau-based Dawson had begun clearing the site for construction. Twenty-two months later, the critical access hospital was open to serve Wrangell and southern-Southeast.
For more information on SEARHC’s enhancement of services, visit searhc.org/expansions.
