UMC is grateful to U.S. Veterans for their service, and we like to show it! That’s why we have two key recognition programs in place for any veteran who is admitted to our hospital.
The first of these is our veteran appreciation cards. Our volunteers deliver appreciation cards, and place American flags on veterans’ hospital room doors, in order to notify staff of their service. Due to COVID, these procedures have been put to a halt, but we plan to implement them back as we start to return volunteers in a safe way.
Another of these, which began September 1st, is called, “Final Salute.” The Final Salute is a way to pay our respects to a veteran who passes away while at UMC. Starting in World War II, military coins were used as a token of appreciation. As a result, coins are extremely meaningful in the life of a person in the military. For this reason, one piece of the Final Salute is a coin given to the patient’s family
Our coin has the UMC seal and the text “we appreciate you!” on one side. And on the other side, there are five flags, each one with a different symbol to represent each branch in the military. So far, UMC has given out two coins. “The coin given to the family,” said Timothy Howell, Senior Vice President of Patient Care Services, “represents our thankfulness and appreciation of the veteran and their service during their lifetime.”
