When I came to Albert Lea in 1964 to practice medicine, I was fresh out of residency and four years in the Army, including one year in South Vietnam. My family included my wife, Judy, and five small children. We were warmly welcomed by the community and the small group of health care givers at Naeve Hospital and the two medical clinics.

While the Albert Lea facilities were not as plush as the university I had left, they were complete with fully staffed radiology and laboratory departments, thanks to an active and forward-looking Naeve Hospital Board of Trustees. As our family grew with the birth of our sixth child (delivered by Dr. Robert Demo) so my medical practice grew and the scope of medical services increased with the addition of kidney dialysis and chemical dependency treatment.

In 1975, it was apparent that newer facilities were needed to care for patients and to attract more doctors. The board embarked on a community campaign to raise funds to build a new hospital overlooking Fountain Lake. It was an exciting day when we moved all the patients in the old hospital through the tunnel into our brand new state-of-the-art facility. The new hospital allowed for a special care unit and a fully staffed emergency department. It also allowed for the successful recruitment of additional specialists in urology, obstetrics/gynecology and orthopedics.

The year 1982 was a memorable one in our family. Judy and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary, and I delivered our first grandchild at Naeve Hospital! The medical climate in Albert Lea continued to evolve when the two clinics merged in 1985, substituting cooperation for competition. As the number of doctors serving our patients continued to grow, the winds of change created exciting new ways to deliver medical care.

After several years of negotiations, the East and West Clinics and Naeve Hospital secured an affiliation with the Mayo Clinic in 1995. A part of this agreement called for the construction of a new clinic building to be connected to the hospital and the opening of a cancer center. These changes formed today’s Albert Lea Medical Center.

Following my retirement from active medical practice in 1999, my role changed from being a provider of medical care to that of a recipient. When I needed a total knee replacement, I chose Dr. Mark Ciota to do the surgery, and then the fabulous nurses to provide post-operative care and Health Reach physical therapists to guide my rehabilitation. Since then, ALMC physicians have discovered and removed malignant skin cancers on two separate occasions.

I am grateful for the wonderful years my family and I spent growing with the community and its medical facilities. As president of Naeve Health Care Foundation, I embraced the capital campaign that will complete our newest clinic expansion. I will do all I can to ensure that ALMC will continue to provide my family and friends with excellent medical care. I encourage everyone in the community to invest in their own health care by becoming a partner with ALMC through a personal contribution.

Ted Myers, M.D., is the president of the Naeve Health Care Foundation.