Two PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center leaders honored with Patriot Award

BELLINGHAM, Wash. – Two PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center employees have been granted a Patriot Award from the Washington branch of  Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR). The Patriot Award is given in recognition of extraordinary support of employees serving with the National Guard and Reserve.

Ronald Colley, supervisor of Security, and Brian McClory, manager of Security, were each presented with the award at a surprise ceremony in late December. Colley and McClory were nominated by Security employee, Johnathan Gastkill, who serves with the US Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound- Seattle, WA. Gastkill and John Van Dalen, Washington ESGR ombudsman, were on hand to present the unexpected accolade.

 “The Patriot Award was created by ESGR to publicly recognize individuals who provide outstanding patriotic support and cooperation to their employees, who like the citizen warriors before them, have answered their nation’s call to serve,” said Van Dalen. “Supportive supervisors and managers like Ronald and Brian are critical to maintaining the strength and readiness of the nation’s Guard and Reserve units.”

“I nominated both Brian and Ronald because they are very supportive of my military career and have invested a great deal of time, energy and effort in making changes for me to complete my obligations with the Coast Guard. Scheduling can be very complicated, but they found ways to overcome any obstacles that got in the way,” Gastkill said.

Both Colley and McClory were surprised and humbled to receive the Patriot Award. “We will continue to thank Johnathan for his service and work with him to support this service when he is called,” said McClory.  

“I support Johnathan and members of the military who serve our county. We know we are getting a known asset when we hire veterans or reservists like Johnathan,” Colley said.

 “As an organization that cares, PeaceHealth inspires us to do the same. While Johnathan was out for several months in service to our country, his fellow members of our Security team stepped up selflessly to cover for him,” Colley added. “The Security team’s dedication to service of our organization and our community by providing a safe and secure environment for care makes them the true patriots here.”

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About PeaceHealth: Based in Vancouver, Wash., PeaceHealth is a not-for-profit Catholic health system offering care to communities in Washington, Oregon and Alaska. In 1890, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace founded what has become PeaceHealth. PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center provides quality care for northwest Washington with its full-service 253-bed hospital and PeaceHealth Medical Group clinics. Key services in Bellingham include comprehensive cardiology, oncology, orthopedic and rehabilitation services and a joint venture outpatient imaging service.