Kimball Health Services turns to public to secure final portion of funding for new facility

KIMBALL, NE — The next big step to making Kimball’s new hospital a reality is underway.

"Well it's something where I've been CEO since 2011 and I don't know there's a day that's gone by that it didn't get mentioned somehow," Kimball Health Services CEO Ken Hunter said.

Hunter and his staff unveiled a new campaign to help raise funds for the new facility last week. The goal of the fundraiser is $2.2 million. They’re off to a fast start. When KHS went public with the campaign last week, they’d already raised $1.5 million.

"The most gratifying part of it is the all the local, community support," Hunter said. "The people of Kimball County have been great and extremely supportive."

Chairman of the Board of Trustees Jim Cederburg believes starting the public part of their campaign over halfway to their goal will make people more enthusiastic about donating.

"Yesterday we had a couple contact Kerry Ferguson our foundation director and they're donating $50,000 to the cause," Cederburg said. "That's a direct result of our announcement."

Donation levels range from $5,000 all the way to $1 million with naming rights up for grabs depending on how much someone gives. For example, a $10,000 donation entitles someone to name a clinic exam room while a $250,000 donation would give someone the opportunity to name either the pharmacy or laboratory.

The new 60,000 square foot hospital will replace the current facility that was built back in the 1950s.

"We really have no option," Cederburg said. "The fire marshal has said we've been grandfathered in, but grandfather is slowly leaving. There's just so many code violations we're dealing with and we can give much better customer care with a new facility."

The project includes renovating and rebuilding the former West Elementary school and roughly 40,000 square feet of new construction. Construction is slated to start in May.

"We're that close and we'll just keep rolling," Hunter said.

The rest of the cost is being funded through a USDA loan and bonds the hospital will pay back with future revenues. No tax money is expected to be needed to repay any loans or bonds, according to Cederburg.

For more information on Kimball Health Service's Capital Campaign, click here.