WINCHESTER, Ontario – Last month, Bert Armstrong logged 361,000 steps on his smart watch – all between the hours of 7 am and 3 pm, from Monday to Friday. “They say I move around WDMH a lot,” he laughs. “I guess they are right.”
The WDMH team is glad he does! While the clinical team takes care of our patients, Bert takes care of our building. For the past 35 years, Bert has been part of WDMH’s maintenance team. Prior to that, he worked for one year in Dietary. “My wife made me apply all those years ago,” he remembers. His construction background prepared him well for his new role.
On June 11th, Bert retired after spending more than half his life at WDMH. He says he has a lot of memories. “I’ve seen the good, the bad, and the ugly,” he jokes. “I will miss the people. They are a good bunch to work with.”
Bert’s connection with WDMH is strong. He was born at WDMH – as were his two sons and grandchildren.
In 2009, Bert spoke at the official opening of the expanded hospital. “I have lived my whole life in Winchester and this community – and many others around us – have a very strong connection to WDMH. And it will only grow stronger with this beautiful new hospital,” he said. Bert went on to talk about a discovery he made years ago while doing some renovation work: “I found an old box filled with archives from the opening of the original hospital. In the box were the original minutes from a 1946 board meeting – two years before the hospital actually opened. We are so lucky to have this hospital and I am proud to be part of it.”
The good news is that Bert will be just a couple of blocks away. And speaking of walking, he has walked to and from work and gone home for lunch throughout his career. “I can walk home, make and eat my lunch, and be back to work with a 30-minute turnaround,” he says.
Retirement plans include tending to a large garden and spending more time with his four grandchildren. He says his wife also has a pretty full honey-do jar and he will have no more excuses about why he can’t get the jobs done. Bert and his wife also like to walk – no surprise! – so more walking vacations are on the list.
Enjoy your well-earned retirement, Bert!
If you would like to provide comments or suggestions about hospital services, please contact Cholly Boland, President and CEO, Winchester District Memorial Hospital at 613-774-1049 or by email at cboland@wdmh.on.ca.
