St. Margaret's Hospital Guild
St. Margaret's Hospital Guild has supported Wishard since 1907.
During the Christmas season of 1906, the Reverend Dr. Lewis Brown, the rector of the old St. Paul's Episcopal Church, invited five women to accompany him to every hospital in town to spread Christmas cheer. Cards made by the ladies with verses written by James Whitcomb Riley and trimmed with sprigs of holly were given to each patient visited.
Early the following year, Dr. Brown received a note of appreciation with a check for $5 that was to be used "at the discretion of the young ladies." Thus, St. Margaret's Hospital Guild was formed in March, 1907. The Guild members chose to aid the children of the city hospital, now known as Wishard.
Best known for its annual Decorators' Show House, the Guild provides funds every year to Wishard for a variety of capital improvements and program enhancements. Through the years, funds raised have benefited areas including pediatrics, the Richard M. Fairbanks Burn Center at Wishard, radiology, the St. Margaret's Diagnostic Breast Center, newborn and special care nurseries, Midtown Community Mental Health Center, the Wishard Ambulance Service, and mobile mammography services. In all, the Decorators' Show House has raised nearly $10 million for Wishard.
