The contents of two time capsules opened a door back through history.
There was a 1915 prayer book in French, the language of the original Sisters of Providence, whose order was based in Montreal, Quebec.
A photo of Bishop O’Day, who in 1903 asked the Sisters of Providence to open a hospital in the city.
March 2 celebration events for the centennial of Providence Everett Medical Center.
9 a.m.: Pacific Campus, 916 Pacific Ave., display of the contents of the Providence time capsules in the cafe, and a city proclamation by Everett Mayor Ray Stephanson. 11 a.m. to noon: Centennial Mass of celebration (open to the public), Immaculate Conception Parish, 2501 Hoyt Ave. in Everett. The mass will feature the Archbishop Alex J. Brunett of Seattle. Music by Tony Melendez. 2 p.m.: The Colby Campus, 1321 Colby Ave., Celebration in the Colby Cafe. Snohomish County Executive Aaron Reardon will present a Providence centennial county proclamation. 7 p.m.: Free concert with Tony Melendez. Open to anyone but is aimed at teens. Immaculate Conception Church, 2501 Hoyt Ave. in Everett. Call 425-261-4550 for information. |
There were photographs of Everett’s Monte Cristo Hotel, which the sisters bought for $50,000 in 1904 to convert into a hospital.
“Here are the pictures of the first superiors,” said Tim Serbin, director of mission and spiritual care, referring to the first Roman Catholic sisters in Everett. One was a portrait of Mother Marie Alexander, who headed Providence Hospital when it opened March 1, 1905.
Those time capsule contents were put into museum-style display cases.
The public can view these treasures Wednesday, the day that marks Providence Everett Medical Center’s 100-year-old anniversary celebration.
Centennial events are scheduled throughout the day with the biggest public event an 11 a.m. centennial Mass of celebration at Everett’s Immaculate Conception Parish. Archbishop Alex J. Brunett of Seattle will lead the Mass.
Music will be provided by Tony Melendez, who has performed for Pope John Paul II and has been a guest on “The Today Show.” Melendez, who was born without arms, plays the guitar with his feet. He will perform again at 7 p.m., a free concert open to the public but aimed at teens.
Over the past century, Providence has grown from an organization with 11 Catholic sisters and three employees to its current workforce of 2,860 employees, the county’s second-largest private employer.
Last year, its emergency department treated 95,275 patients.
Today, Providence is planning for a $400 million expansion to be carried out over the next 15 to 20 years and to include a new cancer center, parking garage, more hospital beds and an expanded emergency room.
That expansion has put Providence in the center of a controversy because to grow, the hospital would have to demolish or move 21 homes the hospital now owns and rents in the historic Donavon district.
That controversy will be put aside Wednesday as the community gathers to recognize one its legacies.
“One hundred years later, we’re still here, strong and proud,” said Gail Larson, the hospital’s chief executive.
Larson recalled that when the sisters first came to Everett “this part of the country was kind of rough and ready, and known mostly for sawmills.”
Through the hospital’s doors came the victims of the 1916 Everett Massacre, the waterfront battle that left seven men dead and 50 wounded.
Nurses treated people struck down by the Spanish influenza outbreak of 1918, and provided medical care to people during the Great Depression through a barter system.
Serbin said he recently found a letter written by Mother Joseph, one of the original Catholic sisters sent to Washington in 1856.
She described living in a 10-by-10-foot room, barely big enough for the five sisters to sit around a meal table.
Mother Joseph wrote: “Our work is so great, we will soon hardly remember these humble beginnings.”
“I think we have a great story in our history,” Serbin said.
“When we opened the time capsules, it was like touching back to the same spirit that I see today.”
Reporter Sharon Salyer: 425-339-3486 or salyer@heraldnet.com.
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