The Circle 100 Club of the Wallowa Valley Health Care Foundation held its One & Only Annual Meeting March 19 at Wallowa Memorial Hospital’s conference room, with 64 women attending to give their checks for $100 to join, and to hear about the request from Chief Nursing Officer Jenni Word to use this year’s proceeds to purchase new reclining chairs for patient rooms.

“The critical need right now is a comfortable reclining chair for all of our patient rooms,” said Word, noting that currently there are only three chairs that have to be moved around to accommodate different patients.

Medical/surgical manager Wendy George, who has been researching and “test-driving” chairs, said, “By purchasing a chair for each room, patients can be moved out of bed throughout their stay, into the chair, which will help with their mobility, comfort and healing.”

The state-of-the-art chairs, which offer several different positions, feature “zero gravity” technology, the same technology used at NASA for astronauts in space travel, and helps relieve pressure on bones, which can be fragile in the elderly and others recovering from surgery or injuries. The chairs can also be positioned to have feet placed above the level of the heart, for those suffering from different types of edema. Getting the patient out of bed and into a chair can help prevent pressure ulcers as well, according to George.

Wallowa Valley Health Care Foundation board vice president Saralyn Johnson talked about the benefit to family members, who often spend extended time in a patient room when caring for a loved one, of comfortable reclining chairs. “Believe me, when my mom was in the hospital for several weeks, I would have given anything to have a comfortable reclining chair to rest in. Once, I was so desperate, I lied down on the floor.”

At the meeting, board member Glenda Underhill shared this year’s goal for Circle 100: 170 members. Prior to the One & Only Annual Meeting, 54 women who were unable to attend had mailed in their checks for $100, bringing the total membership to 128 — and growing. “We are still accepting members,” said Foundation Director Stacy Green.

Foundation board member Gail Swart spoke about the launching of a new club — the Men’s Guild 100. This club will be similar to the Circle 100 Club, but with one key difference: it will be all men. The first meeting is set for Thursday, April 23, at the Lostine Tavern. For more information on either Club, contact the Foundation at 541-426-1913.

“We appreciate everyone’s generosity so much,” said Swart. “We can’t say thank you enough.”