Published: November 23, 2008 12:19 am      

New hospital open house

Dec. 5 date expected for occupancy at new facility

KEYSER, W.Va. — Children, teenagers and adults filled the lobby and spilled through the front entrance at the new Potomac Valley Hospital Saturday afternoon in celebration of the ribbon cutting and open house.

Hal McBee, owner and chairman of the board, gave a short welcome to all in attendance and dedicated the hospital and Mid-Atlantic building.

The new Potomac Valley Hospital on Pin Oak Lane south of Keyser is dedicated to Dr. Robert Best Jr., whose son is also on the new hospital’s medical staff. McBee also dedicated the Mid-Atlantic Office Building to Robert McCoy.

McBee also thanked many who helped bring this project to fruition, such as Linda Shroyer, vice president of corporate affairs, and Michael Makosky, PVH administrator.

Larry Kessel, trust vice president and loan officer of First United Bank, was another of the many people McBee recognized.

“At one point I told Larry that I thought this couldn’t work,” he said of the hardships with building the new hospital. “But he said ‘Hal, we’re going to make it work.’”

The 50,000-square-foot facility cost a total of $20 million and Kessel and First United Bank put $16 million toward it through the bank and assorted banks they work with. Funding also came from the county, which put in $1 million; $1 million came from Potomac Valley Hospital; and $2 million from an equipment loan.

Another big group McBee thanked was the community churches who donated a combined total of $1,900 for the hospital’s chapel. Those churches included Trinity Evangelical Lutheran, First United Methodist, Church of Assumption, Living Faith Fellowship and Believers Fellowship, all of Keyser. Church of Brethren of Westernport and Sunnyside Church of Brethren of New Creek also made donations. The Biomed Department of PVH helped fund the chapel as well.

But it wasn’t just a community project, it was also a McBee family effort.

“My wife, Judy McBee, made all of the drapes,” he said. “And Stacy (Cha) and Yvonne (McBee), my daughter and daughter-in-law, helped with all of the pictures on the walls. Actually, Yvonne did a lot of (the photos) herself.”

But the hospital isn’t quite finished. A stoplight will be installed to help control traffic and some of the rooms still need to be finished. Some of the newer equipment from the old hospital will also be moved to the new building’s OR. McBee said the earliest date for occupancy at the Keyser, W.Va., facility would be Dec. 5.

But with all the hard work done, McBee couldn’t be happier or more proud of the final result.

“I think this hospital is really going to help the health care system,” he said. “It’ll make it easier to hire people and we even have five kids from this community working here.”

He said the project has been such a long process but is so happy to be able to do this for the community.

“They have helped us out and now we’re able to help the community,” McBee said. “Having people who I don’t know come up to me and thank me is real exciting and heart fulfilling. I really think this is the start of something new.”

Contact Tess Hill at thill@times-news.com.