A family’s tragedy brought live-saving services to Hollister
Residents celebrated the 100th anniversary of Hazel Hawkins
Memorial Hospital Nov. 13 on the steps of the original building at
the corner of Hawkins and Monterey streets.
A family’s tragedy brought live-saving services to Hollister
Residents celebrated the 100th anniversary of Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital Nov. 13 on the steps of the original building at the corner of Hawkins and Monterey streets.
Descendants of the hospital founders showed up to celebrate the occasion, including Bill Hawkins and Alice Hawkins. Hospital staff presented flowers to Alice Hawkins during the ceremony.
Gordon Machado, a hospital trustee, gave a speech during the momentous occasion. City staff presented a plaque to the Hospital staff for their 100 years of service to the community.
In 1902, the Hawkins family suffered the loss of a child when 9-year-old Hazel Hawkins died from appendicitis. Her grandfather vowed to put a hospital in the city so other families would have the services closer at hand. The hospital opened in 1907, close to the downtown area and the city center at the turn of the century.
The hospital continues to serve the community in its current location at Sunset Drive with the hospital, and a community clinic in Hollister and San Juan Bautista.
