Baptist Health Paducah dedicates Carson-Myre Heart Center
The Baptist Heart Center was renamed the Carson-Myre Heart Center today in a dedication ceremony honoring the late Jane Carson Myre, daughter of local Coca-Cola founder Luther F. Carson, and her husband, the late Louis Myre, MD, a Baptist Health Paducah heart care pioneer.
The Baptist Heart Center was renamed the Carson-Myre Heart Center today in a dedication ceremony honoring the late Jane Carson Myre, daughter of local Coca-Cola founder Luther F. Carson, and her husband, the late Louis Myre, MD, a Baptist Health Paducah heart care pioneer.
The Carson-Myre Charitable Foundation, started by the couple, has provided the lead gift for heart services in the “Celebrating Miracles, Transforming Lives” capital campaign recently launched by Baptist Health Foundation Paducah.
The Carson-Myre Charitable Foundation has supported cardiac care at Baptist Health Paducah since before the heart center opened in 2007. Their gifts have funded cardiac rehabilitation and various new technology, including last year’s enhancement of the region’s first electrophysiology lab to diagnose and treat irregular heartbeat, or problems with the electrical system of the heart.
Dr. Myre was on staff at Baptist approximately 30 years before retiring in the mid-1980s. In the 1960s, he, along with Drs. C. Pittman Orr and W.P. (Pete) Hall, set up the hospital’s first cardiac ward with five beds. The hospital’s historic cardiac program grew to offer the area’s first open-heart surgery in 1985 and first nationally-accredited chest pain center in 2008.
“Dr. Myre was an essential part of Baptist Health becoming the region’s heart hospital,” said Judge William Howerton, chairman of the Carson-Myer Charitable Foundation. “We know Dr. Myer and Jane would be very honored to see their names on the hospital they loved so much.”
Recently-retired cardiologist James Gwinn, MD, worked with Dr. Myre from 1978 until Dr. Myre’s retirement. “It is an honor to have been part of the cardiac care tradition started by Dr. Myre,” Dr. Gwinn said, “and Baptist Health Paducah is blessed to continue to receive Carson-Myre support for the next generation of heart care.”
William A. Brown, hospital president, said the hospital is grateful for the legacy of Dr. Louis and Jane Carson Myre. “Our continued relationship with their Carson-Myre Charitable Foundation has helped us become one of the most respected hospitals in the state for cardiovascular care,” he said.
Baptist announced a $10 million campaign in January to support cancer, cardiac and maternity care, as well as outreach programs to improve the health of the community. “Celebrating Miracles, Transforming Lives,” the first-ever comprehensive capital campaign in the 64-year history of Baptist Health Paducah, has already raised $7.6 million.
For more information or to make a donation, contact the Foundation at 270.575.2871 or visit SupportBaptistHealth.org/Paducah.
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Baptist Health Foundation Paducah
After five years of door-to-door campaigns, bake sales and car washes to bring a dream to fruition, Baptist Health Paducah opened in 1953 and has been rooted in philanthropy ever since. Baptist Health Foundation Paducah extends its Christian heritage by affording businesses, families and individuals the opportunity to make financial contributions to the hospital to meet the healthcare needs of the area. The Foundation holds annual events, such as a fashion show and golf tournament, and features giving societies, such as the President’s Circle. All funds raised by the Foundation stay in Paducah to enhance local patient care with new technology, expanded services and facilities.