The Loma Linda University Health Ribbon- Cutting Ceremony
August 6, 2021: Eyewitness to Loma Linda University Campus History
The featured image (taken at 6:00 AM on August 6, 2021) is of the east elevation of the Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital and Medical Center on the Dennis and Carol Troesh Medical Campus.
Loma Linda, California, August 6, 2021: The Big Day for the Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony Has Arrived! For the first time since the groundbreaking ceremony, 62 months and 16 days ago, the Loma Linda University Transformation Project is silent. The hammer blows of progress have come to an end, save for the sounds of the crews that are making the last-minute changes before the virtual ribbon-cutting ceremony begins. As of 6:00 AM, with temperatures in the mid-60s, The Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital and Medical Center towers on Dennis and Carol Troesh Medical Campus quietly glistened under the muted azure skies. By 6:30 AM, the early morning sun began to bathe the upper floors in sunlight while allowing the east parking lot where the ceremony will be held to linger a little longer in the shadows. The gold bunting with the smartly tied bow that bridges the towers over the fifth-floor facade glisten in the sunlight. By 6:45 AM, the site for the ribbon-cutting begins to come alive, trucks and SUVs appear along the fire lane: landscapers, security, and others who are involved in preparing the venue for the ceremony follow their script. At 7:00 AM, with the towers bathed in full sunlight, the shadows over the east parking lot slowly give way to the early morning rays as the bright orb of the sun reflects off of the central elevator tower. By 7:30 AM, the whole venue is in the sun. The Big Day for the Ribbon-Cutting Event has Begun!
I arrived at the venue at approximately 9:00 AM and from the east side of Anderson Street, I paused long enough to take a photo of the hospital towers from grade, sans the security fence. It was very fitting for the towers to push up toward the bright azure skies with the reflection of the sun bursting forth on the south corner of the Loma Linda University Medical Center tower. I would like to think, less than 24-hours after Loma Linda University Health received licensure approval from the California Department of Public health, that the bright sunburst reflection symbolizes that bright tomorrow of hope, health, and healing, which will be brought to the community, not only by advanced technology but carried forward through the motto of Loma Linda University Health: “To Make Man Whole.”
I paused for a moment to memorialize the moment. Less than 24-hours after having received licensure from the California Department of Public Health, the Ribbon-Cutting ceremony will begin in a little more than an hour (10:00 AM).
The gardens around the Dennis and Carol Troesh Medical Campus are a gift from Laura and Jack Dangemond and the people of Esri.
The Plaque of Appreciation Reads in Part:
“The gardens around this hospital are designed to remind us of our natural world and how interdependent we are on its health. . . .”
From the “Prayer Garden,” I entered the Main Entrance Canopy where the Main Entrance doors are located to the left.
The Main Entrance sliding doors.
After walking through the sliding doors, I entered the vestibule that flows into the Galleria via two entrances.
The above image is of the Main Entrance vestibule. The doors at the opposite end of the vestibule opens to the Children’s Hospital Lobby. The Main Entrance sliding doors are on the north side of the vestibule to the left. To the left is the entrance into the Children’s Hospital Lobby. to the right is the entrance that leads into the Medical Center (Adult) Lobby.
I turned to the left where a sliding door opened to welcome me into The Children’s Hospital Lobby. By turning right, in the vestibule, a sliding door would have opened allowing me to enter into the Medical Center (Adult) Lobby.
The Galleria Information Desk before the interior lobby letters were mounted behind the desk. The image was taken from the Medical Center (Adult) Lobby side. The corridor at the right leads to the Grand Hallway and the security desk.In the left panel, a sign installer was carefully mounting interior lobby letters behind the information desk. A few hours later when I returned to the Galleria, the project was done as illustrated in the right panel. When patients and visitors walk into the Galleria, they will see the institution’s motto: To Make Man Whole.The Security Desk inside the Grand Hallway. The elevators directly behind the desk take the Medical Center patients to the Adult tower. The elevators down the left corridor (next to the flowered panels) and to the right are reserved for the Children’s Hospital. Patients and visitors will be unable to access the elevators to the towers if they do not have the proper pass.Directly behind me from, where I stood, at the security desk are these large-screen monitors that rotate images every few seconds. This particular image provides interesting information about the construction project. The information projected on those screens is listed below.
Interesting Construction Trivia
* 1,154 MILES of WIRING runs through the building, which is enough to extend from Loma Linda to Seatle, Washington. * 116 MILES of PIPING for plumbing was used, which is enough to go to Downtown LA and back. * 5,100 TRUCKS worth of concrete were used to pour the floors of the hospital. * The tallest tower stands 268 FEET, making it the SECOND TALLEST HOSPITAL in California as a 16-STORY building. *The building sits atop BASE ISOLATORS. * The entire project is constructed of roughly 27,000 TONS of STEEL, or 38 million pounds (equivalent to about 13,103 average-sized cars). * Approximately 9,185 GALLONS of PAINT were used. * 4,200 DOORS are installed within the hospital. * If you melted all the steel down to a 1-inch diameter cable, that cable would stretch from LOMA LINDA to NEW YORK CITY with 300 miles to spare.
To my left as I stood at the security desk to check in, a large oil portrait of Dennis and Carol Troesh hangs on the east wall that backs the cafeteria. Their $100 million lead gift to Loma Linda University Health spearheaded the fund-raising drive toward the $1.5 billion construction project.
As I walked away From the security desk toward the Medical Center elevators, I stopped long enough to capture a few Medical Center staff members as they made their way down the Grand Hallway toward the west exit.
Just before I took this photo the staff had walked past the Leonard L. Bailey Pediatric Heart Center.
Two other points of interest the Medical Center staff will pass on their way to the exit are the Nathan Greene painting “Little Lamb Awake,” the story of Jairus’ daughter. This is the first of 12 paintings that tell of the Healing Miracles of Jesus.
Just beyond the painting and to the left is the Gift Shop.The last point of interest before the exit is the Gift Shop is stocked and ready to open for business on Monday morning August 9, 2021.
And so, I walked into the Medical Center elevator and pressed the button to the 16th floor.
In the elevator to take my last ride up to the 16th floor.The view from the 16th-floor Terrace/Balcony. It was hard to believe that In 45 minutes from the time I captured this image, the long-awaited ribbon-cutting ceremony would begin at !0:00 AM.
Having completed my task on the 16th floor, I took the elevator down to the first floor where I would make my way to the site for the ribbon-cutting ceremony. As I left the building, a grave thought came to mind: “I just made my last trip to the 16th-floor. My photographic work inside the towers has come to an end.” Without question, that realization was a bittersweet moment!
Scoping Out the Location
The first thing I wanted to do was to scope out the venue site to determine, if possible, the best locations to take photos without getting in the way of the “professionals.” Just prior to the start of the ceremony the temperature on my watch read 81 (sticky) degrees.
My first stop was the Wyatt Goup’s production trailer, where I would give a thumbs up to my friends Carol (center) and Bill Wyatt (smiling) as they prepare for “lights, camera, and Action.”
The first location I checked out was the fire lane above the parking lot where I had spotted two cameras. I learned that the Wyatt Group had stationed the video camera to capture the ribbon as it fell from the parapet. The gentleman on the left who was with the Marketing Department told me that his “sole purpose” there “was to photograph the ribbon as it fell.”
The ribbon on the stage mirrors the large bunting that is hung over the facade between the two towers above. I have concluded that this is the ribbon I will focus on when the time comes for the big event. Before the ceremony began, Kerry Heinrich, JD – CEO of LLUH Hospitals, Executive Vice President for Hospital Affairs poses with two of his colleagues, Angela Lalas, MBA, CPA – CFO and Senior Vice President for Finance (left), and Trevor Wright, MHA – COO of LLUMC.A few minutes before the ceremony begins, Richard H. Hart, MD, DrPH, President, Loma Linda University Health, looks over the script with the stage producer.
The Ceremony
If you missed it, click on the portal: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCoXy_r1NgA to view the Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony. The video you are about to watch is for the general public. The images on this blog feature the Ribbon Cutting-Ceremony that was streamed live at 10:00 AM to various employee viewing rooms around the campus.
Richard H. Hart, MD, DrPH, President, Loma Linda University Health delivers his opening remarks.Kerry Heinrich, JD – CEO of LLUH Hospitals, Executive Vice President for Hospital Affairs is introduced by Richard H. Hart, MD, DrPH, President, Loma Linda University Health.Kerry Heinrich, JD – CEO of LLUH Hospitals, Executive Vice President for Hospital Affairs makes his remarks.California State Treasurer Fiona Ma, CPA speaks at the ceremony.Richard H. Hart, MD, DrPH, President, Loma Linda University Health introduces Rachelle Bussell, MA, CFRE – Senior Vice President for Advancement.Tamara Thomas, MD – Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs listens to a video presentation before she speaks.Before the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Thomas Lemon, MDiv, Loma Linda University Health Board Chair, gives a prayer of dedication. Ricardo Peverini, MD, Senior Vice President of Clinical Faculty, Loma Linda University Health; President/CEO, Loma Linda University Faculty Medical Group, in the blue shirt (left), focuses his camera on the VIPs who will be walking on stage to cut the ribbon.The VIPs prepare to cut the ribbon.Just as the VIPs cut the ribbon, someone next to me, wanting a better angle, bumped my arm just as I pressed the shutter. So much for that perfect shot???With the ribbon cut and the confetti floating in the air, the VIPs look upward toward the towers to watch the bunting fall.The ribbon has been cut. The left side took longer to fall after the trigger was released.One last look before all the trappings of the ribbon-cutting ceremony is removed from the east parking lot.
After graduate school Dennis accepted a position at Loma Linda University. He worked there for 42 years in the areas of administration and financial management, also teaching accounting and management to dietetic students at the School of Public Health. Through the years Dennis has chronicled the growth of the campus, including the construction of the Drayson Center and the Centennial Complex and the razing of Gentry Gym. He is the author of "The Mound City Chronicles: A Pictorial History of Loma Linda University, A Health Sciences Institution 1905 - 2005." dEp 09.30.2016 🔨
