North Shore Residents Participate in Groundbreaking for Froedtert Healing Plaza

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North Shore Residents Participate in Groundbreaking for Froedtert Healing Plaza

Photo caption (LtoR) Tom Gunkel, President/CEO, Mortenson Construction, Froedtert Hospital CEO Bill Petasnick, Mequon; Froedtert Vice President-Facilities, John Balzer, Wauwatosa; Froedtert Hospital Foundation Board Members Norman Barrientos, Bayside; and John Rosenberg, Mequon.

Milwaukee, Wis., (April 20, 2010) --- More than 60 people attended a groundbreaking ceremony April 19 marking the start of work on a 20,000-square-foot garden plaza on the eastern side of the Froedtert Hospital campus. Cancer survivor Ben Levin joined contributors, hospital volunteers and project representatives in planting flowers in a giant window box that will remain at the site as work continues, offering a reminder of the peaceful oasis that is to come.

Entirely funded by contributions to the Froedtert Hospital Foundation and named for a major donor, the Mortenson Construction Healing Plaza will feature three distinctive garden areas, trees, walking paths, benches and a waterfall. The Healing Plaza will be open to patients, visitors and staff, and is expected to be completed in late summer.

“People come to Froedtert Hospital at some of the most difficult and challenging times of their lives. The Healing Plaza is very much in keeping with our commitment to caring for the whole person, addressing the spirit, mind and body,” said Mequon resident William D. Petasnick, president and chief executive officer of Froedtert Hospital. “We are deeply grateful to the generous donors who have made this project possible.”

For progress updates on the Healing Plaza, follow us on www.twitter.com/froedtert.

Froedtert Hospital is a 486-bed academic medical center staffed by faculty of the Medical College of Wisconsin. It serves as an eastern Wisconsin referral center for advanced medical practice care in 37 specialties and subspecialties. It is a major training and research facility with more than 1,000 medical, nursing and health technical students in training and hundreds of active clinical trials each year. Froedtert, a member of Froedtert & Community Health, operates the region’s only adult Level I Trauma Center. For more information, visit froedtert.com.

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