The end of an era

What will life at IU Health White Memorial Hospital in Monticello be like without Mary Minier?

It’s hard to say.

For the past 49 years, she has been an undeniable fixture of the hospital’s culture and team. There aren’t many people there who remember “life before Mary.”

An accidental beginning

A lifelong Monticello resident, Minier joined IU Health White Memorial—then White County Memorial Hospital—in 1975 as a housekeeper. Her plan was simply to work for a few months, save up money and then go to Florida to study law.

But life, like it often does, had other plans.

And those plans included taking Minier through the ranks at the hospital, from housekeeper to patient registration and billing manager, to vice president of revenue and chief compliance officer—all the way to five years as White Memorial Hospital president and her current role as chief operating officer for both White Memorial and Frankfort hospitals and vice president of support services for IU Health Arnett, Frankfort and White Memorial.

She was instrumental in bringing the county hospital into the fold when it joined IU Health in 2011, followed by Frankfort Hospital in 2017. She helped make the White Memorial campus a smoke-free environment (“There was a cigarette machine in the lobby when I started,” she recalls) and championed the change from paper operations to the hospital’s first computer operating system. She’s cleaned patient rooms, arranged black-tie galas and led the hospital through the COVID-19 pandemic.

To put it simply: She’s seen it all, from top to bottom.

“I respect and admire Mary for her hard work and coming up through the ranks to be our leader,” says Denise Hauser, RN, who has worked at White Memorial alongside Minier for 27 years. “She sets a wonderful example for others in her ability to lead well while gaining the respect and admiration of those she serves.”

“I just try to be very authentic,” says Minier. “I can come to you, and I know you’re going to tell me how it is.”

Lasting relationships

A lot has changed since Minier’s first days at the hospital in 1975.

But many of the friendships she formed in those early years have endured through the decades of change.

“I met Mary when I started working at the hospital on Dec. 14, 1983. Mary worked in the front office,” shares Connie Jordan, RN, manager of the inpatient unit at White Memorial Hospital. “I had to go to the front office and turn in papers/charges from the unit.”

“I appreciated her knowledge and expertise and for being the guru of all things billing,” says Hauser. “Mary has always been a bubbly and welcoming personality to all and has represented our hospital and community well for many decades.”

“Mary is a friend to everyone she meets,” says Jessica Overman, Revenue Cycle Services manager at White Memorial who has known Minier for 18 years. “She is kind, compassionate and always has a listening ear.”

For her part, Minier has treasured her relationships with her coworkers over the years, bearing witness to some of life’s biggest milestones.

“I’ve seen people get married, divorced and remarried,” she says. “I’ve seen births and deaths. I’ve personally hired many individuals who still work at IU Health that I consider friends. When I leave, it’s the people I’ll miss.”

Big-picture thinking and small-town passion

A formative event when she was young—losing her father—helped shape her understanding of the importance of her work.

While he was hospitalized, he would send letters about what great people were caring for him and what great care he received.

“It grounded me,” she says.

Minier’s dedication to excellence—in any job she has held at the hospital—is something she’s known for and a big part of her successful career, according to those who know her best. Similarly, she is known for her genuine commitment to doing right by the rural communities White Memorial serves.

“Mary sees the whole picture. She knows what she is doing or deciding reflects on the entire facility and not just her area or what she is doing at the time,” says Jordan.

“Mary has never used her title to her advantage,” says Overman. “She is not a leader that walks down the hallway with her head down to avoid eye contact. She will always have a smile on her face and ready to embrace all things coming her way.”

Renea Smith, White Memorial chief nursing officer, has worked closely with Minier for several years and agrees that Minier’s optimism and tendency to “lean in” when the White Memorial team needs support is something she greatly admires about Minier.

“Mary is able to put her head down and partner with me anytime to get through challenges we never even knew could be real,” she says. “Being her ‘partner in crime’ allowed us to accomplish some amazing things together."

Minier says she loves helping people solve problems and get things done.

“[She] is a go-getter and does everything with 110% effort,” says Hauser. “She is a great mentor to others and has a dedication to our hospital and community that is second to none.”

“Her genuine compassion for the [people] she leads and the community in which she lives, and her advocacy for rural health is beyond remarkable,” says Smith, who has known Minier for more than a decade. “She has love, loyalty and commitment to all she does and a true connection and care for those she works with.”

Wishing her well

Today, 49 years after she started her just-for-a-little-while job as a housekeeper at the local hospital, Minier holds a master’s degree in healthcare management, 20+ Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) certifications, more knowledge about White Memorial than likely anyone (“Mary has the brain of an elephant, she can remember everything” says Jordan) and a reputation as a great co-worker and leader and an even better friend.

To say that she will be missed at White Memorial would be an understatement.

“I have grown to love Mary as a dear friend and will greatly miss seeing her in the building,” says Hauser. “I know, though, that she will continue to do good things in the life of others. I wish you the best of happiness in your retirement, Mary!”

“She will be so very missed,” echoes Smith.