History is often a good teacher and sometimes it is instructive to look back at previous examples of community spirit and generosity as we approach projects like the new Allen County Hospital. Recently the newspaper reported that the land where Allen County Hospital sits was donated in the early 1950s by a local family — the Bowlus family. Later in the 1960s, Tom Bowlus, president of Allen County Bank, left the bulk of his personal estate to establish the Bowlus Fine Arts Center for the children and citizens of the county. Its impact on the quality of life in the area is well known and appreciated.
Earlier examples are interesting, too. In 1897, when Iola had a population of about 1,800, the paper reported that the much used Riverside Park was all but donated to the community five or six years before by “a dozen of public spirited men (who) went down into their pockets and put up $2,800 to buy it. And they have practically given it to the public for not one of them has received a dollar income on his investment, not even a free ticket to any of the shows that have been held there.”
As with most public projects in our corner of Kansas, the planned new hospital budget does not have much in it for extras or contingencies. In fact I am part of a small group that is exploring the feasibility of launching an endowment for the new hospital and a fundraising effort to seek additional donations to provide needed equipment for the new facility that is not part of the present bare-bones budget. The need for private contributions is there, but do we have people who will want to help out financially?
As negotiations take place between the hospital board and the owners of the land at the proposed site over a fair price for the land, one can’t help but wonder if there are those among us who have a similar vision and generosity of spirit of the community-minded people that have gone before us.
People like Tom Bowlus are rare, to be sure, but the dozen civic leaders that bought the land in the 1890s now called Riverside Park were not. I suspect they were just a group of local business people who wanted to improve the town so it could grow.
Those people who lived through or were born in the Depression years and experienced World War II have been called “The Greatest Generation.” My parents and grandparents were members of that group. They understood the importance of hard work and community service and even personal sacrifice for the common good. Many people of that era are already gone and successor generations are now “in charge.” As part of the group that’s left I wonder, “What kind of legacy will we leave?”
My hope is that we all can be inspired by those who have gone before us in our community. And before the new hospital is completed maybe we can point to similar examples of service and generosity for the new Allen County Hospital made by citizens of our century.
Jim Gilpin,
Iola, Kan.
