Laura Goodale Award

In the same year that Rotary International was born, 1905, the residents of Greenport decided that it was time that they had a hospital of their own.

 

Those trips to the nearest hospital in Mineola were pretty long and the roads not nearly as passible as they are today.  Imagine having appendicitis or a broken bone and making that trip!  There were “bonesetters” who could come here from Connecticut should you break an arm or a leg.  At that time if you needed surgery, the doctor would do it in his office or your home.

 

The Joshua Holbrook House sat at the head of Sterling Creek.  Built in 1856, the “Mansion” as it was known, passed through several owners until the Wood sisters, Mary & Mariah, purchased it.  Hearing of the Village’s desire to have a hospital, they offered it to the community as long as the taxes were paid and it was properly maintained.  Foreseeing the good that would come out of this, they eventually donated the Mansion to the community and Greenport owned its own hospital building.

 

In 1986, Carl Vail, an older member of the Rotary Club of Southold, approached the Club and suggested a program for recognizing outstanding nurses at Eastern Long Island Hospital.

Carl had been born on a farm in Peconic in 1895.  When World War I came along, Carl volunteered in the United States Army.  He developed measles on his trip over to Europe…and then scarlet fever.  He spent time in European hospitals before he ever got to the front…enough time in fact that he very much appreciated the fine care he had received at the hospital in Greenport when he had been treated for appendicitis much earlier.

He was especially appreciative of the care he had received from a nurse he fondly remembered as Laura Goodale.

 

Laura Goodale had come to the North Fork in 1918 as a young nurse for an elderly patient who moved out to the East End from New York City.  Dr. Loper, the woman’s doctor, recognized that Laura was a skilled and caring person and encouraged her to go to the hospital to apply for a job, which she did.

 

After 42 years of service and caring for patients, assisting in surgical cases and delivering more than 2,000 babies, Nurse Laura Goodale retired in 1962.  At her retirement, Laura Goodale was recognized for her dependability, good-natured conscientiousness, tender care and devotion to her patients. She had set a standard of caring, a standard which permeates the efforts of all who have served and are currently serving at ELIH.

 

The Rotary Clubs of Southold and Greenport are proud that, with Carl Vail’s urging, we annually continue to recognize outstanding nurses at Eastern Long Island Hospital, those who embody the qualities and excellence of Laura Goodale. View the names of past recipients here.