Morris Hospital Foundation Receives Significant Gift from LyondellBasell for Life Saving Program
Morris Hospital’s Kathy Geiger (from left), Stephanie Brewer and Hannah Wehrle accept a $13,000 gift from Randy Tatum and Megan Borchers from LyondellBasell in support of Stop the Bleed, a national movement that trains bystanders to assist in bleeding emergencies.
December 4, 2019, MORRIS, IL – The Morris Hospital Foundation received a $13,000 gift from LyondellBasell Morris Complex in support of Stop the Bleed, a national campaign that encourages bystanders to become trained, equipped, and empowered to assist in a bleeding emergency before professional help arrives.
Over the past year, Morris Hospital has teamed up with local police, fire, government, and school officials to teach faculty and staff at area schools how to respond in an emergency bleeding situation. So far, more than 1,000 individuals at area schools have been trained throughout the 19 communities served by Morris Hospital & Healthcare Centers.
“LyondellBasell is proud to be part of the Stop the Bleed movement by providing the resources that will empower individuals to take life-saving actions in the event of a bleeding emergency,” said Megan Borchers, Public Relations Lead for LyondellBasell’s Morris Complex.
“As the LyondellBasell Morris Complex celebrates 50 years of operation, this gift was made in support of our corporate slogan, to ‘advance possible’ in the communities where our employees live and our children go to school. We are so proud to work and live in this community and we will continue to volunteer our time and invest our dollars locally,” said Borchers.
According to Stephanie Brewer, EMS Coordinator at Morris Hospital, bleeding injuries can occur as a result of natural and manmade disasters, as well as from everyday accidents.
“Research has shown that bystanders, with little or no medical training, can become heroic lifesavers,” said Brewer. “Providing high school faculty with basic tools and information on the simple steps they can take in an emergency situation to stop life-threatening bleeding can save lives. We are so thankful for the many community partnerships making this program possible.”
LyondellBasell’s $13,000 gift will be used specifically to cover the cost of emergency kits at Minooka High School’s main and south campuses. Each kit costs $70 and contains a permanent marker, two pairs of latex free gloves, a C-A-T tourniquet, an emergency bandage, a pair of trauma sheers, rolls of gauze dressing, and a just-in-time training card to help civilians provide effective assistance. The number of kits needed at each school is based on the number of classrooms and common areas.
Other area schools that have received bleeding kits after getting trained by Morris Hospital and local agencies include Morris H.S. and Premier Academy, with funding provided by the Community Foundation of Grundy County, and Seneca H.S. through the Peg Davis Civic Fund. Faculty and staff at Coal City H.S. also received training and pursued funding for their kits through local grants.
To learn more about Stop the Bleed or to help fund emergency kits for other area schools, please visit www.morrishospital.org/donate or contact Hannah Wehrle, Auxiliary & Foundation Officer at Morris Hospital, at 815-705-7021 or hwehrle@morrishospital.org.
