A spirit of giving filled the Surgery Department at Decatur County Memorial Hospital (DCMH) this holiday season, thanks to a team-led initiative inspired by one nurse’s idea.
Hannah, a nurse in Surgery, wanted to create a fun and meaningful holiday project for her team and identified the Decatur County AGAPE Center’s (AGAPE Center) Christmas Blessing Baskets as a cause in need of support. In 2024, the AGAPE Center provided 120 Christmas Blessing Baskets filled with food to help families prepare a holiday meal, along with a few extra items. AGAPE Center recently shared on social media that additional food donations were needed to ensure the program could be just as successful in 2025. The Surgery team quickly agreed and made it their shared mission.
Fellow nurse McKinsey partnered with her husband, Dustin, to build a wooden donation tree, which the Surgery team decorated and placed in the surgery waiting room. The tree served as a place to hold and store donations, as well as a cheerful way to wish patients happy holidays. Food donations were made by the Surgery team, patients, visitors, and hospital staff, offering support to anyone in the community who may be facing food insecurity.
With the tree now full, the Surgery team will deliver the donations to the AGAPE Center and plans to make the project an annual tradition.
“Food insecurity is an ongoing challenge in Decatur County, and the Hospital’s support is very helpful,” said Kim Springmeyer, AGAPE Center Representative.
The AGAPE Center serves the community throughout the year, not just during the holidays, and items are given to those in need daily.
At DCMH, community means coming together, supporting neighbors, caring for one another, and finding meaningful ways to give back beyond hospital walls.
