Chicago Politics

Lawndale Christian Health Center Grand Opening 9.9.26

Description

Mayor Brandon Johnson attends the Lawndale Christian Health Center Grand Opening.

Transcript

0:00 Remember, that smile looks good on you. There you go, there you go, there you go. At this time, we're going to invite Pastor Jonathan Brooks forward. He's the lead pastor of Lawndale Christian Community Church, and he's also a proud board member of Lawndale Christian Health Center.

0:31 And also the second part of the Brooks Brothers. God bless you everyone thank you so much for being here with us I'm just going to do my job and get out of the way those smiles do look good on each and every one of you I want to corroborate that statement let's bow our heads together and let's enter into prayer God we are thankful we thank you for this day which represents so much for each and every one of us it is a reminder of your faithfulness it is a reminder of your continued support of the work

1:03 that is happening in North Lawndale, a little village, God. We pray, God, that this building and this moment would stand as a monument, not just to the work that's being done here, but to the God in which the work is being done for. God, we pray that every person who walks through the doors, every patient that has served here and every provider that serves here, that every single person that works in this building and visits it would feel your tangible presence as they walk in. God, we pray that you will continue to keep our community, that you will provide

1:34 for our community and that we would know that whatever we need you have already promised to provide for your word says now unto him who's able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we ask or think according to the power that works in us may our time this evening, this time of dedication and this time of honoring all of the blood, sweat and tears that's gone into this moment be a reminder that our God is faithful and he'll never leave us nor forsake us bless this time bless us all and we'll be careful to

2:09 give your name the praise it's in Jesus name we pray and all God's people said amen amen God bless you now receive at this time wow I'm so honored to introduce Keisha McFarlane who's also one of my colleagues here at the health center so we're in for a treat as she opens us up in song all right y'all it's okay to go to church now all right all right thy faithful name my father

8:25 is the day that the Lord has made and great is his faithfulness. I'm so grateful to be with you all today celebrating what the Lord has done here at Lawndale Christian Health Center. I want to take this moment to thank each of you who support your prayers, your advocacy, and hard work paved the way for this project, that it will bless our community for generations to come.

8:59 A special welcome to our board of directors, all board members, will you please just stand? Yeah, board members. Yeah. Unique thing about community health center board members, we have to meet every month, every month, so they're faithful and thank you so much so special welcome to our board of directors all the speakers all the elected officials that are here thank you our local pastors and leaders

9:38 our construction team our donors thank you so much i see the shriver family here john thank you so much and all of our staff that make this place go let me Give special shouts out to Sarah and Joe Lesh. Where are they? Yeah, they're the designers.

10:09 Interior, exterior, they did it, y'all. Thank you so much. Our residency team, our leaders there, let's acknowledge them. Those who care well for our seniors, our senior care team who will grace the second floor of this space. Thank you. Holding us all up is our optometry team on the first floor. Thank you so much. And our operational and development team. We could not have done this

10:47 without y'all. Thank you. Lawndale Christian Health Center was birthed out of Lawndale Christian Community Church in 1984. Our mission is to show and share the love of Jesus, right? By providing, by promoting wellness and providing quality and affordable health care to Lawndale and our neighboring communities. I am so delighted to serve in the role. But y'all, I do not serve by

11:24 myself. I've got a great team, but most of all, my great team is at home, and that's my wife, Jackie. My daughter is here, Janae. My mother-in-law here, Anita. I got to get it, y'all. I can't go back. I got to acknowledge my people. My cousins are here, so thank y'all. All the support. My community, even block members are here. Jimmy Gaither is here. Look at him.

11:56 But our mission is to show and share the love of Jesus. So today's event is a time for us to honor the past by recognizing those whose shoulders we stand on, to celebrate the present with this ceremony, and to offer hope for the future of this space and the programs within it, especially while knowing the challenges are coming ahead. In honoring the past, I want to take a moment and mention LCHC's first CEO, and that's Dr. Art Jones.

12:41 It's Dr. Jones. I think I saw him. Yeah, yeah, he's not going to stand up. Dr. Jones, who was among one of our very first providers here and who started providing health care in North Lawndale while completing medical school and residency. His vision for offering high-quality health care in this community was part of what inspired the establishment of our very own Family Medicine Residency Program in 2022.

13:20 So thank you, Dr. Jones. All of our work at LCHC is influenced by our belief that health is rooted in community. We understand that the health of an individual cannot be separated from the health and well-being of the surrounding community. This building provides extensive space to train a diverse group of physicians, including a strong focus on those from groups underrepresented in medicine and those who are passionate about caring for communities like ours.

14:02 So thank you to our residents. In addition to our residents and faculty, this building is now, it also holds and houses our senior clinic on the second floor, which is dedicated solely to our seniors and designed with their needs in mind. When we talked about the second floor, I said, in honor of my father, Reverend James Brooks, Sr.,

14:34 he used to go to the VA hospital just because. He didn't have a doctor's appointment. He just wanted to go and hang out. So what if we created a space in our community where seniors, they may not have a doctor's appointment, but they just want to hang out? So we have created that space, and I'm excited for y'all to use it. Amen. And on the first floor, holding us up, is our optometry team,

15:08 who now has a new, larger space to provide crucial services for our patients in the eye clinic. So I am excited that when you walk past the building, you'll see nice frames, and you'll be enticed to go in to say, I want to try those on, all right? Over the last few months, our staff has worked incredibly hard to transition their care teams into this new space.

15:39 As you can imagine, it requires a whole host of dedicated staff to move a project of this scale from a concept and a vision to a fully operational building that we can open now to our community. I am deeply grateful for their commitment to getting us here today. So thank you to our operational team that made this possible. As we look forward to the future of LCHC and this building,

16:10 we cannot ignore the headwinds that are coming our way. The upcoming Medicaid changes, it is devastating. And this will significantly impact our work and the lives of our patients. Over a quarter of our current patients are uninsured. That's right, y'all. We care 25% of our patients are uninsured now.

16:46 And we anticipate that this number will grow as many, as soon as January, will lose their Medicaid coverage. The financial strain this will put on community health centers, and we have many of my colleagues here today. Make some, wave your hands. Thank you for your service. The financial strain this will put on our community health centers like ours is immense, and we will need your continued support as we continue to provide accessible health care for our community that desperately needs it.

17:34 But even with the challenges ahead, we remain hopeful. We have come this far and God has seen us and he will not let us down now. For the scripture tells us Ephesians 3 20. We know God is in control and we are better together. So God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above anything we could ask or think.

18:06 So as we move forward, not in fear but in faith, we've come this far by faith, we'll go forward together as coach would often say, we are better together and we are trusting God for what is next. Let the people of God say amen. At this time, we're going to have Dr. Ben Price come with an overview and dedication.

18:36 Make some noise for him, y'all. What a blessing. Good afternoon. My name is Ben Price. I'm a family medicine physician, and I am the program director for the Lawndale Christian Family Medicine Residency. That's right. That means I get the absolute joy and privilege of representing that fine-looking team back there.

19:07 Look at them. 24 amazing residents, 15 faculty that are dedicating big chunks of their time here. equipping the next generation of family docs. As Dr. Brooks said, when we launched this residency program in 2022, we had no idea where our home base would be. We didn't know where our home clinic would be. We didn't know where our teaching spaces would be. But what we did know with absolute clarity is what our mission was going to be, which was to train the next generation of family

19:40 medicine physicians to live out the mission that we hold so dearly here at Lawndale Christian Health Center, to show and share the love of Jesus, to provide accessible. affordable and the absolute highest quality of care to our patients. To do that in a holistic and whole person way and to do it right here on the west side of Chicago, that's right, in particular for those that are often the most vulnerable or overlooked in our

20:11 community. And so with this beautiful building we now have a home. We have a home clinic where we can practice what we teach and we have beautiful teaching spaces where we can encourage and equip our residents, to live out this mission, both during their three years here at Lawndale Christian Health Center, but even more so for the entirety of their careers as family medicine physicians. As a team, we've talked about how honored we are to share this building with our eye

20:41 clinic and our senior clinic, and it's because of what those teams represent to our team. As Dr. Brooks said, our eye clinic here on the first floor is a small, but they are a mighty team that provides exceptional eye care and eyewear to our patients that can often be very challenging to access and they remind us that you cannot separate the eye from the body any more than you can separate the heart or your leg from your body that we are to provide whole person care mind

21:11 body and spirit and up on the senior clinic on the second floor our team cares for probably the most beloved patients in our entire health center and we're reminded that we are to use our greatest strengths and our greatest resources to serve and love on some of those that are most vulnerable and overlooked in our community so on behalf of our entire family medicine residency team and our clinical leadership here at lawndale i want to thank each and everyone who played a role

21:45 in bringing this beautiful building to fruition. We're so thankful for your support and for your shared belief in our mission. I want to especially thank the Shriver family, how you guys have continued to support our residency program. And lastly, I just ask for your continued prayers as we continue to seek to serve our patients as well and to train our residents exceptionally well so that they might carry this mission forward for generations to come. Thank you all, and God bless you all.

22:19 Next up is the chair of the Board of Directors for Lawndale Christian Health Center, Ms. Chelsea Johnson. Got to get it all together. All right. Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Chelsea Johnson, and it is truly an honor to stand before you today as the board chairperson for Lawndale Christian Health Center.

22:54 But more importantly, to stand here as a daughter of this community. Because for me, it is not just a new health center. This is home. This very ground holds some of my earliest memories. This is where I learned to walk. I played rock teacher on the stairs. And long before I could understand what community meant, This community was helping shape me into the woman you see standing before you today.

23:29 See, 3816 West Ogden holds memories for me. In the 1970s, this space was home to my grandparents' four-table pool hall and a three-seat shoeshine stand. My grandmother also ran a food cart right here, serving homemade hot tamales and pig ear sandwiches. And let me tell you, those pig ear sandwiches were serious business. Truck drivers came from near and far for my grandmother's sandwiches, and she would sell out every day.

24:06 And right here on this corner was a neighborhood grocery store where we could buy groceries. And, yes, we could also buy penny candy. Those memories remind me of something very important. Ogden Avenue has always been a business incubator. It has always been a place where people dreamed, worked, served, created, and built something for their families and their neighbors.

24:41 And this community has always been a village, a village that loves, a village that cares, a village that shows up. Some may look at this building and see bricks, walls, examination rooms, and offices. I see a legacy. I see the continuation of a community that has always found ways to take care of its own. And today, we get to continue that legacy in a new and powerful way.

25:17 This family and senior health center represents our commitment to caring for our community at every stage of life. And I am especially grateful that we get to provide compassionate, quality care for some of our community's finest, our seniors. This building represents love. It represents care. It represents dignity. It represents what can happen when a community believes that its people deserve the very best.

25:51 When I think about the little girl who once walked these grounds, played on these grounds, and watched her family work and serve this community, I could have never imagined that one day I would be standing here as a leader in the very community that helped raise me. That's the beauty of a village. The village raises a child, and sometimes that child grows up and comes back to leave the village.

26:23 So today, I am grateful for 1973, for my grandparents, for my grandmother's hot tamales and pig ear sandwiches, for the memories, the lessons, the laughter, and the love. And I am just as grateful for 2026 because 1973 gave me memories. But 2026 gives us an opportunity to build the next chapter of the legacy. May this building always be filled with healing, hope, joy, compassion and genuine care.

26:59 And may everyone who walks through these doors feel what I have felt my entire life standing on this ground. You are home. You are valued. You are loved. And your community will always care for you. Thank you and congratulations to Lawndale Christian Health Center and the leadership on this incredible new chapter. Thank you.

27:34 Chelsea got it in where her family lived, but my family lived 1436 Ridgeway, so make some noise. And the cool part is we all get to walk to work together every day, so to God be the glory. At this time, the one and only, our very own Mayor, Brandon Johnson, will come at this time. Y'all could do better than that.

28:09 Thank you so much, Dr. Brooks. Good afternoon, everyone. And it's truly a pleasure to be with you all as we celebrate this incredible ribbon cutting for such a dynamic community. And Chelsea, I didn't know you were running around in the 70s. How old are you, girl? You look good. Come on, 53. Yes. Yes. Yes. I'm like, shoot, I need to get myself together. I just turned 50, and trust me, I ain't running around no more.

28:42 To all the elected leaders that are here today, all the community leaders, this is an exciting grand opening. I want to thank again the elected officials that are here today, the state, local partners, and of course the staff who have helped make today possible. I want to give a special great thanks to the Lawndale Christian Health Center for your work. Forty years of servicing North Lawndale and the greater west side. God bless you. As one of the largest community health providers on the west side, Lawndale Christian Health is a major employer and health care anchor in this community.

29:21 From the start of my administration, I've made it very clear to work to ensure that all residents can have access to affordable and quality health care. And today's opening is another investment in reaching that goal. This new family and senior health center continues Lawndale Christian Health Center's faith-based health care. But more importantly, this new space will expand access to family medicine, senior care, and optometry services for residents of North Londo. We know that projects like this don't happen in a vacuum.

29:53 In fact, it happens because of partnership and collaboration between elected officials, community partners, and organizations with a shared goal of investing in communities and most of all, loving people. So I want to give a special shout-out to JPMorgan Chase, Schreiber Philanthropy, and the other funders and partners who made this project possible. Investments like this one will go a long way in ensuring that residents have access to affordable, safe, and quality health care. And my administration will continue to work to ensure that investing in health care projects

30:25 and opening new locations like this one here on the west side, we do this throughout the entire city of Chicago. So let's keep up this important work as we go a long way to improve the quality of life for our residents. And let me just close with this note. You know, when I took this position on, of course, the birth of my ministry, I have to give credit to Lawndale Community Church. Shout out to Lawndale Community Church. And the health care services are so vital.

30:57 This year, we don't get a lot of attention for this. But life expectancy has extended in Chicago. 79 and a half years. That's how long people live in Chicago. And since I've been mayor, we have closed the life expectancy gap between white and non-white residents. The largest gap that we closed was with black men. two to two and a half years. Black men are living longer because we have greater access to health care. And so when we talk about making these investments,

31:30 we have to keep in mind the people that we are called to serve. So God bless you. And with that, I am going to turn it back over to Dr. Brooks. Thank you. I'm going to move us right along. We have Commissioner Boatwright here, Planning and Development, will you come?

32:05 Good afternoon, everyone. I want to congratulate the entire project team for today's $24.5 million step forward for Ogden Avenue in North Laundale. As a planning commissioner, it's always so gratifying to see the physical improvements that result from new investment and the optimism it represents about the future. It's even more exciting when the new investment is all about public health, because health is wealth, and there is no greater investment that we can make as a community than investment

32:40 in people, our families, our neighbors, and our seniors. Residence health is the city's health, so this facility truly represents a down payment on a prosperous future. Kudos to all the project partners that are so instrumental for projects like this. Also, the multiple funding sources that contributed to this project, including the Chicago Developments Fund $11 million New Market Tax Credit allocation that underscores the city's commitment to investments just like this.

33:13 The Senior and Family Health Center is a community anchor. It's not an island. Many other projects are happening across North Lawndale through city support under Mayor Brandon Johnson. In fact, over $175 million of investments right here in North Lawndale that includes dozens of missing middle homes, multiple economic development projects, retail and commercial build-outs, and other improvements that represent a holistic approach to community advancement under Mayor Brandon Johnson in partnership with Alderwoman Scott.

33:50 We are so proud of the Lawndale Christian Health Center and its unshakable commitment to the neighborhood and to the people of Chicago. So congratulations to North Lawndale, to the ward, and to the entire team. Thank you. Receive at this time our new Ogden neighbor, our state rep, Yolanda Morris. Thank you.

34:28 Good afternoon, everyone. I am State Representative Yolanda Morris of the 9th District, North Lawndale to West Loop to Tip of Lincoln Park. I myself is born and raised right here in North Lawndale. And Chelsea, I want to thank you. I want to thank North Lawndale for being my village, right? So today is a special day for North Lawndale, and it's an honor for me to be here to celebrate the opening of the new Lawndale Family and Senior Center.

35:01 As someone who was born and raised right here in North Lawndale, this moment means a great deal to me. I have had the privilege of watching our community change and transform over the years. I have seen the challenges, but I have also seen the strength, determinations, and the resilience of the people of North Lawndale. And today, we are witnessing what happens when we make a real investment in our community. This center is more than a bricks and mortar. It is a place where families will find support, where our seniors will have a place to gather, connect, and thrive,

35:38 and where generations can come together and strengthen the bonds that make this community so special. This is what investment looks like. It looks like opportunity. It looks like dignity. It looks like making sure that the people who have carried this community for generations have the resources they deserve. I want to thank everyone who have worked to make this day possible, our community leaders, our partners, residents, and all those who believe in the vision of a strong North Lawndale.

36:08 I am proud of where I came from, and I am even more proud of where we're going. This transformation of North Lawndale has been a great investment in our community, and today it is another step forward. So let's celebrate this moment. Let's continue investing in our people, and let's make sure this center serves our families and seniors and generations to come. Again, congratulations to the North Lawndale family. Thank you. all right keep clapping the one and only our senator lakeisha collins good afternoon everyone

36:55 it is such a pleasure and honor to be here today i guess i didn't get the memo i have an address and i'm just hoping that you know there's no accidents or nightmares tonight but i want to give a huge thank you to the north lawndale christian health center and to the ceo dr james L. Brooks for your leadership, your vision, your resilience, and your heart. Thank you to the Schreiber family for your incredible investment into the community here on the West Side. Thank you to the City of Chicago, our Mayor Brandon Johnson, to JPMorgan Chase,

37:28 to my colleagues that I get the pleasure of working with at the state, and to everyone who had something to do with this amazing investment. To every doctor, nurse, staff member who is going to show up here every single day to pour love and care into our seniors thank you you all are the heartbeat of this center this moment here means everything to me and I'm sure it means everything to you all but this definitely hits close to home before I ever walked onto the Senate floor I

37:59 spent around 14 years working as a CNA and it was in the nurse whether it was in a nursing home or down the street at Mount Sinai, day in and day out, I was right there with our elders. I wiped their brows, held their hands, and I saw firsthand how a system too often forgets about them. That pain and that resilience is why I fight every single day for health equity and access for our seniors in Springfield. Our seniors built our families,

38:29 they built our blocks, and our city. They gave us their whole lives. They shouldn't have to travel across town to fight through broken systems just to get the health care and dignity that they've earned a hundred times over and over again. They deserve a brand new state-of-the-art center, and they have it now right here, right in their neighborhood, where they are treated like royalty. And this ribbon-cutting isn't just for a new building. It is for legacy.

39:00 It's about love. It's about respect. And it is about power. And so let's keep building. Let's keep fighting for our seniors and our families. And let's enjoy this incredible day. And it is such an honor to serve you all at the state level. I love you all, and there's nothing you can do about it. And congratulations. Thank you. Put your heads together for State Rep. LaShawn Ford, soon to be Congressman.

39:33 Thank you very much, Pastor. And I just have to say, I don't know, Mr. Mayor. I've been in office 20 years, and I haven't seen the commissioner. on the west side like this in my whole career, so keep them coming. I told her, you know, I'm not trying to get a real estate deal, but I am giving up real estate. But I did tell her, if I see her on the west side again, we're going to sell her a house because she's been doing her business over here. Thank you, Mayor. Thank you, Boatwright.

40:05 And I have to say that it is amazing to have the Brooks. I mean, you can't lose when you have the Brooks Brothers. I mean, Londell, you did the right thing when you brought the Brooks brothers together because you can't lose when you've got two cran brothers on your side. And for the white people, I've mixed the brothers up too. So I've called him him and him him. So it's okay if you do it.

40:37 Just say I said it. They look alike. You know what I mean? And I have to also say that you're also lucky. It's not often that you get to get the first lady, because I asked, Pastor, is your wife on staff? Because she's also invested in this community. So give it up for Ms. Brooks, because when I see her in there, she's earning his pay, too. So thank you very much for that.

41:09 And coming in, I have to say that when I looked up, I saw the coats, and I saw they were long. I said, this is great, because now their coats are not short. They know more than they did before. And everyone knows about the short coats, but they came down, and they look very powerful. So let me just thank the residents for actually choosing to be here on the west side.

41:42 This is a choice and it is deliberate for you to be here on the west side of Chicago so that we can end that disparity, so that we can end the biases in health. This is how you do it. You come to the communities that need you the most and you serve. So thank you very much for being here. And by the way, I give a shout-out to my optogeness. How do you say it?

42:12 I got tongue-tied. Where she at here? Thank you very much. And you've got to give me a speech therapist because I couldn't say optogeness. But thank you very much, and I'm so happy. And the actual building here actually does the speaking for us. This is huge. Thank you all very much for being here, and thank you. I'm sorry. I meant, and I need somebody to help me with my aging and memory.

42:46 But you have to give it up for, of course, J.P. Morgan, but I definitely want to give it up for the Shriver. I mean, when I grow up, I want to be a congressman, but I want to give money like them. So, John, thank you very much for donating and making this also possible. Thank you. Speaking of money, we invite Melissa Pillars to come up from Chase. Come on. Give her a hand, y'all.

43:25 Good afternoon, everybody, and thank you so much for having me. It's truly an honor to be here. When I pulled up to the building, it was even more beautiful than the renderings that I saw as we were financing this project. And this project's special. I've been with Chase for 22 years, but this is the first project that I signed up for new market tax credits when I started with the team. So I'm super excited to see it come to life. As they mentioned, I'm Melissa Pillars, and I handle New Market tax credit originations on J.P. Morgan's community development banking team for our central region.

43:56 At J.P. Morgan, our work is rooted in one simple belief. Strong communities create opportunity. And few things create opportunity more powerfully than access to quality healthcare and the ability to train the next generation of healthcare providers. and that's what makes this project so meaningful when we talk about building a pipeline of doctors we're really talking about creating opportunities for people to learn to train to build relationships here and hopefully choose to stay here

44:30 raise their families here and care for the families that call these neighborhoods home what I love most about this project is that it brings those two goals together expanding access to health care while investing in the future. healthcare workforce. And that matters because healthcare is deeply personal. It's deeply personal to all of us. When we sit down with a doctor, we're not just sharing our symptoms, we're sharing our fears, our questions, and sometimes the

45:00 most vulnerable parts of our lives, and that requires trust. My dad, who's a senior, is a perfect example. Spanish is his first language, and he'll tell you that he doesn't like going to the doctor because he's afraid they're going to tell him something's wrong. And I tell him, Papi, por eso vas. That's why you go. But I think a lot of us can relate to that feeling. My dad is a very proud man.

45:32 And even though he understands quite a bit of English, there are times when he fully doesn't understand everything a doctor is telling him. And honestly, I don't either. And I speak English. Medical information can be complicated. When you're trying to understand a diagnosis, treatment options, or what comes next, being able to communicate comfortably and ask questions with confidence makes a real difference.

46:02 When you're already feeling vulnerable, having a physician that understands your experiences, your background, or even speaks your language can help build trust and create a better health care experience. and that's why building a diverse pipeline of physicians is so important because representation matters. We want people from every part of the community to be able to look at the medical profession and see a place for themselves and we want patients to feel seen, heard and understood

46:32 by the people who are caring for them and that commitment to care and representation is one of the things that makes Lawndale Christian Health Center so special. For decades, this organization has built trust by meeting people where they are and delivering care with dignity and compassion. JPMorgan Chase is proud to support this effort through a $5.9 million new market tax credit investment, but projects like this only happen when committed partners come together around a shared vision. So I want to thank my community development partners, including the City of Chicago's Chicago Development Fund,

47:09 IFF, S.B. Freedman, Crow Island Community Capital, and the many, many attorneys who helped us get here. And most importantly, I want to thank the Lawndale Christian Health Center team. James, Chris, the CFO who was on all our calls, your board, staff, volunteers, and supporters have spent decades building trust, expanding access to care, and investing in this community. And we are all excited to see the future physicians who will come through this program the patients whose lives will be touched by it,

47:41 and the healthier community that will result because of it. So thank you. Hey, y'all. Listen, we're nearing the end, but you guys got to make a lot of noise, all right? Me and this guy, we connected over sixth grade basketball when we first met. I'll never forget that, and they have been so generous. Put your hands together for John Schreiber as he comes.

48:12 I got you. I got you, brother. Thank you, Doug. So everyone in this crowd is thinking, what's that old white man doing here? And here's the story that may interest you. In the lobby here is a plaque for a guy named Monsignor Jack Egan.

48:45 He was the uncle of my wife, Kathy Egan, when we met in the early 60s. We live on the far north side. and he was the pastor here in Lawndale of Presentation Church. And we've been to Mass here, and I forget where our singer is, but Father used to say, if you want good music, you should come down to Lawndale on Sunday. Don't come Saturday night. But that's how we got connected to Lawndale.

49:17 And we've been supporters of Lawndale Health for quite a few years, But, well, I think it was four or five years ago when we met Dr. Brooks. And I asked him, what are your priorities? You just had gotten named CEO, I think, when we were talking. What are your priorities, doctor? And his answer was quick and simple. He said, we need. better and more residents and we need better facilities okay so how do you do

49:49 that well we talked about it a little bit and you know Lawndale is in competition this place is in competition from two of the best medical schools in the country Northwestern in Chicago and dr. Brooks said how do we get kids coming out of those schools with all the opportunities they have including making money and bring them to Lawndale so we kicked it around for a while what can we do to make this work and one of the ideas doctor had was could we create a

50:23 fund that would forgive debt for students coming to Lawndale and isn't that interesting you got to be competitive but how many people ever thought of that so we set up together an endowment fund that would pay out every year of return on investment that could be used to attract the residents who all came with heavy college debt. Obviously the second thing he was interested in, we're all seeing today, was new modern effective facilities for not the doctors

50:59 but for the patients. So I'm proud to say my wife and I, from an early start, are very proud to be here and with you we're proud of the vision and leadership of this man and look what he's produced including all those guys and gals in the back with white outfits thank you very much do me a favor as we prepare now for

51:36 the blessing we're gonna gather I believe back there in the rear and one of our residents, Dr. Gabby, she's going to lead us in the prayer. But I just want to take the time. I get the fancy title of CEO, right? But y'all, it takes, it's, man, it takes a whole bunch of us working together to make this place go. So I just want to take time and just acknowledge all our staff and leaders that are here today, that we do this

52:07 work together. If y'all don't mind, please just stand. All our staff and leaders, all of our community folks, thank y'all so much. And finally, y'all, it's time. It's time. It's time. The moment we've been waiting for, it's time for the dedication prayer and ribbon

52:38 cutting. So I'm going to ask if Dr. Gabby would come, if she would come up first and do the dedication prayer in both English and Spanish, and then we will go to the rear and have the ribbon cutting with all those that want to participate in that. Amen? I didn't know I was supposed to do Spanish, but okay. I'll add a little something in the end.

53:09 um okay i have the honor and privilege to uh close us out in prayer um the good word says that you will declare a thing and it will be established for you so light will shine in the road ahead of you so join me in declaring a thing we declare and decree we will trust in the lord and be like a tree planted by the waters that sends out its roots toward the stream.

53:43 We will not fear when the heat comes. Our leaves will always be green. We will not worry in the year of drought, and we will never fail to bear fruit. We declare and decree to the Jew we will become Jews. To those under the law we will become like those under the law. to those without the law we will become like those without the law to the weak we will become weak we will become all things to all people so that by all possible means we might save some

54:21 we declare and decree we will no longer be spiritually immature tossed back and forth like ships on a stormy sea and carried about every wind of shifting doctrine i'll preach to myself. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. For we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

55:00 We declare and decree that upon this rock, upon this city, upon this state and this nation, Jesus Christ will build his church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. For we will be blessed in the city and blessed in the field, blessed in the fruit of our body and in the fruits of our ground, blessed in the crops of our land and blessed in our livestock,

55:31 blessed in our bread and in our basket, blessed in our coming in and in our going out. And even if an enemy comes against us in one direction, he will flee in seven. So we thank you, Lord, by faith for establishing our decrees. May your light shine on the road ahead of us. And with that, I'll just say, que Dios te bendiga, que te protege, que te sane,

56:04 que sonríe sobre ti, tu familia, y que te dé paz. In Jesus' name we all pray. Amen and amen. All right, so we're going to ask everyone to gather in the rear. We ask all of our donors, strivers, all of our electeds, All of our residents, please gather.

56:35 I want to acknowledge my brother, Dr. Garth Walker. I see him in the back.

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