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(L-R) Howard, Pete and Meg Ashton
The Emergency Department is not a likely setting for meeting one’s life partner, except perhaps in a daytime television drama.
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But for Meg and Howard “Pete” Ashton, the ER of St. Mary Medical Center was where Meg was first introduced to Pete, a Pennsylvania State Trooper, who was there as a patient 25 years ago.
“At the time I was Head Nurse and Manager of the ER,” Meg recalled. “Before long, Pete was making regular visits on official business to the ER, and the rest is history.”
Meg is a 35 year employee of St. Mary, presently holding the position of Trauma Program Manager. Pete, now retired from the State Police, works in the Security Department, and their son Pete is an employee in the Health Information Management department. “St. Mary is an integral part of our lives,” Meg said. “All our children, Pete 23, Kim 22, Melanie 20, and Jimmy 18, were born here. They attended the Child Development Center, and in the early days they would occasionally come to work with me. Our children have participated as junior volunteers, and Jimmy worked for two summers at St. Mary Thrift Store in Langhorne.”
Given these strong ties to St. Mary, it was a very natural progression for Meg and Pete to become active participants in the annual Colleague Giving Campaign. This is an opportunity for employees to make a donation to St. Mary Medical Center. Meg and Pete are members of the Giving Hour Society, each donating one hour per pay period to the hospital, and their son Pete contributes an amount each pay period as well.
“I believe it was Sister Clare who first introduced to me the concept of St. Mary as a City of Healing,” Meg explained. “The hospital was established from its beginning as a place for physical and spiritual healing, and it remains true to its mission for familial and community well being.”
Basically, that explains Meg and Pete’s commitment to the Giving Hour program. “Those of us who are employed in this economic environment should be especially grateful for what we have been given,” concluded Meg. “We spend a lot of time at work, and if we can make a connection between our employer and our family, we all benefit in a positive way.”