Mercy Aurora and Cassville Celebrate 125 Years in the Ozarks

It all began in 1891, when the Sisters of Mercy responded to a plea for help in the Ozarks. Three Sisters traveled from St. Louis to Springfield, turning an eight-room house into the town’s first hospital.

During the next 125 years, their healing ministry has touched lives in several communities spanning southwest Missouri and northwest Arkansas. Mercy Springfield Communities now includes six hospitals, three specialty hospitals, nearly 700 doctors, thousands of co-workers and clinic locations. Meanwhile, the mission remains the same: to bring to life the healing ministry of Jesus.

“The foundation put in place by the Sisters remains solid,” said Doug Stroemel, administrator of Mercy Hospital Aurora and Mercy Hospital Cassville. “At every turn, we’re improving the technology and services we provide so we can reach more people than ever before.”

To celebrate Mercy’s 125^th year of service in the Ozarks, Mercy hosted special flag presentation ceremonies in January at Mercy Hospital Aurora and Mercy Hospital Cassville. Each ceremony included a symbolic flag presentation by some of Mercy’s most seasoned co-workers. There were also special addresses, invocations, anniversary messages by Sister Cabrini Koelsch and a prayer.

Follow #Mercy125 on social media for photos of all the events.

Mercy Springfield Communities is comprised of Mercy Hospital Springfield, named in the 100 Top Hospitals®; an orthopedic hospital; a rehab hospital; a children’s hospital; five regional hospitals in Lebanon, Aurora, Cassville, Mountain View, Missouri and Berryville, Arkansas; and Mercy Clinic, a physician clinic with nearly 700 doctors and locations throughout the region. It is part of Mercy, the seventh largest Catholic health care system in the U.S, which serves millions annually. Mercy includes 45 acute care and specialty (heart, children’s, orthopedic and rehab) hospitals, more than 700 physician practices and outpatient facilities, 40,000 co-workers and more than 2,000 Mercy Clinic physicians in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma. Mercy also has outreach ministries in Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.