
Calling it the next chapter in its rich history, officials at Tomah Health broke ground on a 9,500 sq. ft. addition to its hospital at 501 Gopher Dr., in Tomah May 30.
Tomah Health CEO Derek Daly said growth of the organization prompted the decision to build the addition. “We have really experienced rapid growth as an organization, growth in services and demand for care,” explained Daly. “Growth has been occurring for the last five or six years and that is the biggest reason that we’re moving forward with this expansion.”
He said the new addition will further enhance clinical services and expand areas that are core to the hospital. The project will also add a conference room named in recognition of John and Velda Felton of Warrens, whose trust allocated more than $1.1 million to the hospital for future growth. “Our expanded conference center space, which we hope to open up to community programs and partner events, will be named the Felton Conference Center, while our entire training, education and simulation area will be the Felton Simulation Lab, so they will be very prominently remembered and displayed throughout the halls of this building.”
Tomah Attorney Jay Carmichael, who was the trustee of the Felton Trust, which was announced in 2023, said the Warrens couple would have been delighted with the use of their donation. “Having known them for over 50 years that this is exactly the type of project that they could have envisioned and be proud of,” said Carmichael.
Carmichael said John Felton owned and operated Felton Manufacturing in Warrens, Wisconsin, specializing in equipment design for cranberry growers while Velda was active in the former Tomah Memorial Hospital Auxiliary and an ardent supporter of the Tomah Health Hospice and Palliative Care programs. “It’s been a real pleasure for me to have had the opportunity to work with them and be involved in such a wonderful thing for the community.”
Tomah Health Board of Directors’ Chair Scott Nicol of Tomah said the expansion project is the result of a commitment by staff and the community. “Staff do what they need to do to take care of the patients, and you when you accomplish those things as a board and as an administrator, the rest takes care of itself. The success we’ve had and what we’re doing here reflects that.”
Nicol served on the former Tomah Memorial Hospital board of directors from 1990-1996 during a time when the organization went through some tough times. “I was on the board for six years and at one time we were down to two days cash on hand, but the community and the staff always rallied to get the job done,” recalled Nicol. “It goes back to a mentality that was brought about in 1952 when the original founding fathers, our grandparents and some of these people who work here now their great grandparents. They passed it on to them and now it’s been passed on to us and we’ll pass it on to the next group and it will succeed because of their attitude,” he said. “The original founding fathers set the moral line what this place was going to be, and all of the board members, staff and administration have not wavered from the fact that it is a not-for-profit independent community hospital.”
Daly said work on the addition will take about 10 months with opening scheduled in March 2026. “This was a huge first step for us to shift some things to what we’re calling our Professional Development Center. It is largely going to be about education, training and people while continuing to offer high levels of care to our community.”
