Kickoff of St. Elizabeth Health Center centennial celebration began today

YOUNGSTOWN — The handful of Sisters of the Humility of Mary at Villa Maria, Pa., who started St. Elizabeth Hospital nearly a century ago, would no doubt be stunned today at what they have wrought.

The dream of a Catholic hospital in Youngstown was started on its way to reality on July 19, 1909, when a group of prominent laymen and clergy from the city’s parishes met to pursue the idea.

Two years later, on Dec. 8, 1911, St. Elizabeth Hospital opened in frame buildings on the Fitch property atop a hill at the corner of Belmont Avenue and Burke Street.

One hundred years later, a hugely expanded St. Elizabeth Health Center still exists on Belmont where St. Elizabeth leaders, staff and alumni today kicked off a one-year celebration of those humble beginnings and what the hospital has become nearly a century later.

For the complete story, read Thursday's Vindicator and Vindy.com