Schmidt Memorial Hospital Auxiliary

The Cottonwood County village of Westbrook is home to the smallest hospital in Minnesota: Dr. Henry Schmidt Memorial Hospital. Four months before it opened in January 1951, a women’s auxiliary officially organized and immediately began gathering supplies for the new facility.

In the 1940s, the community of Westbrook in southwestern Minnesota pulled together to fulfill the dream of Daniel Schmidt and his son, Dr. Henry Schmidt, who died during the influenza epidemic of 1918.

Even before Henry Schmidt Memorial Hospital opened its doors to patients in January 1951, people banded together to do what they could for the hospital. One such group, the Clara Barton Club, started by area nurses, formed an official Women’s Auxiliary. According to the group’s constitution, its purpose was “to render any assistance to the hospital which may lie within its powers, including the receiving and giving of gifts.”

On November 29, 1949, interested women met to form the auxiliary. Any woman living in the area interested in the hospital was eligible to join; annual dues were fifty cents. Some of the first supplies gathered to help reduce expenses included sheets, hand-made pillowcases, and canned goods. The first auxiliary president used a room in her home to store donated supplies until the hospital welcomed patients.

The auxiliary was divided into twenty working groups called units. Members paid dues when their units met once a month. All units brought assigned items such as linens, towels, packages of Jell-O, and cans of food to each meeting. Members took their objective seriously and followed strict rules. For example, members who were tardy to a meeting might be fined or required to give a speech to the group.

Auxiliary members discovered creative ways to raise funds in their small, rural community. An annual apron-sale event was held for many years. As years passed and the popularity of aprons declined, baked goods and other sweets found their way to the auction block. Women also brought canned goods and baked products to be auctioned off by a volunteer auctioneer. The first auction raised $315.00. The final auction, in 2004, raised more than $2,000. Money donated to the hospital was designated for specific pieces of medical equipment.

Auxiliary members worked hard to produce talent contests, variety programs, and one-act plays that raised funds for the hospital. One fundraising event that evolved into an annual gathering called Hospital Days brought people to the community for a good time and good food. Fire trucks found a new home for a few days so auxiliary members could clean and use the old fire hall as a concession stand and eating area.

No one went away from Hospital Days hungry. A potato salad with a “secret recipe” was always a big hit at the auxiliary food stand. It accompanied grilled burgers, beverages, and pies made by auxiliary members. Visitors also traveled to the annual celebration to watch a parade and witness young women competing in a pageant for a chance to reign over the weekend’s activities.

Westbrook’s celebration of Hospital Days between June 29 and July 1, 2001, was also its last. The hospital had become a part of the Sioux Valley Hospital system; it was no longer an independent hospital, and the auxiliary’s membership continued to decline. Motivation for supporting the hospital dwindled as local support became less necessary.

The Westbrook Women’s Club stepped up and continued the annual event. The name was changed to Westbrook Fun Days in 2002. Each year, the club picks a different dollar-amount goal for raising money.

Westbrook’s medical facility has the Clara Barton nurses’ group and the hospital’s auxiliary to thank for their support during the hospital's early years. With regret, the auxiliary’s remaining four members voted in 2006 to make the organization inactive. The ever-popular fundraising social event, the apron auction, also ceased. In 2018, the hospital remains a major part of Westbrook but no longer depends on the donations of local residents to cover its operating costs.