(COLUMBUS, Neb.) – As Columbus Community Hospital is building for the future with a multi-million dollar renovation and expansion project, it is time to look back at its past.

“Hometown Health Care: The History of Columbus Community Hospital” is a book that tells about the extensive past of CCH. The book highlights more than 140 years of health care in Columbus —  from the early pioneer physicians and Franciscan sisters who established St. Mary Hospital in the 1800s to the health care workers at CCH who showed a courageous effort during the recent coronavirus pandemic.

“This is the first comprehensive written history of Columbus Community Hospital,” said Amy Blaser, CCH vice president of physician relations and business development. “We wanted to explore the impact the hospital has had on the community and tell the stories of the people who have made Columbus Community Hospital what it is today.”

“Hometown Health Care” was recently released and is being gifted to hospital employees, board members, volunteers and supporters. Copies are also available for purchase in the hospital’s gift shop.

In the book, authors Julie Blum and Ashley Strehle Hartman write about the special relationship between the hospital and the community that has grown through struggles and triumphs over more than a century.

For more information about “Hometown Health Care” and the hospital, go to www.columbushosp.org.