Jeannette J. Phillips Honored at Community Health Center Today in Peekskill

Congresswoman Nita Lowey, Westchester County Legislator Catherine Borgia and Peekskill Mayor Frank Catalina today joined health pioneer Dr. Jack Geiger and executives and staff of HRHCare for a 40th Anniversary ribbon cutting event to rededicate HRHCare’s flagship facility in Peekskill and rename it in honor of Reverend Jeannette J. Phillips.

Phillips served as the organization’s first board president in 1975 and is the last living “founding mother” of HRHCare. The other founding mothers were the late Willie Mae Jackson, Mary Woods and Pearl Woods.

In the early 1970s, four women in Peekskill came together to address the lack of health care services in their community and founded the Peekskill Ambulatory Health Care Center.

“In 1975, I was joined by dedicated people from around Westchester and beyond to make this dream of community healthcare a reality,” Reverend Phillips said. “I never could have done it without the rest of the founding mothers, Dr. Geiger and our local officials. I want to thank Anne Nolon, Alan Steiner, and the rest of my family at Hudson River Healthcare for their commitment over 40 years and more, and for the honor of this rededication.”

In addition to being one of the four “founding mothers” of Hudson River Health Care, Phillips served as the organization’s first board chairperson and has been a key leader in promoting the organization and the cause of affordable healthcare for decades.

“Reverend Phillips is a true leader here in Westchester, and an inspiration to everyone who seeks to provide access to quality health care,” said Nolon, MPH, CEO of Hudson River HealthCare during the ribbon cutting. “We serve tens of thousands of patients at 30 sites around the region, and none of it would be possible without her work.”

Since it opened its doors in July 1975, the organization, now known as HRHCare, has grown into one of the largest community health systems in New York, employing 800 professionals and serving 112,000 patients annually at sites from Ulster and Columbia County to the east end of Long Island.

In 2014, HRHCare saw a total of 480,000 patient visits across its facilities throughout New York State.

“Over the span of my career, I’ve worked with a great number of people around the country on expanding community health options, and Reverend Phillips is one of the most passionate and dedicated among them,” said Dr. Jack Geiger, who helped to found the movement towards community health centers decades ago. “She deserves this honor due to the great work that she and HRHCare do, here and throughout New York.”

Also in attendance was Mrs. Theodosia Green, a 101-year-old local resident who has relied on HRHCare for her healthcare needs since its founding 40 years ago. She is just one of tens of thousands of patients served at the Peekskill facility over the previous four decades.

“At the new Jeannette J. Phillips Community Health Center, we’re committed to serving patients like Mrs. Green for another 40 years or more,” Nolon added. “I want to thank Representative Lowey, Chairman Steiner, and the rest of our local activists and officials for being here today. Most of all, I want to thank Reverend Phillips for all of her work on behalf of the people of the Hudson Valley.”