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The thoroughfare to Silver Cross Hospital’s main campus received a name change Tuesday to honor Silver Cross’ former president and chief executive officer Ruth Colby.
New Lenox Mayor Timothy Baldermann, New Lenox officials and members of Silver Cross staff gathered to “honorarily rename Silver Cross Boulevard to Honorary Ruth Colby Boulevard in her memory,” according to a news release from Silver Cross Hospital.
Colby’s husband, Don DeFrank, and her son David Chodak also attended the dedication ceremony, which was held near the southeast intersection of Route 6 and Silver Cross, according to the release.
“Ruth was a woman of incredible integrity,” Baldermann said in the release. “She never hesitated to pick up the phone and call when it was something that she wanted to do for others. In all the time that I talked to Ruth, not one time did she ever ask for anything for herself. It was always for the hospital, somebody in need, for her staff, for the community.”
Colby served as Silver Cross’ president and chief executive officer from Oct. 1, 2017, until she died on Oct. 15, 2023. She previously served as Silver Cross’ senior vice president and chief strategy officer, starting in 2005 until she became president.
[ Silver Cross Hospital in New Lenox celebrates Ruth Colby’s life and legacy ]
Scott Paddock, Silver Cross senior vice president of external affairs, said in the release that the Silver Cross medical executive committee authored a letter to Baldermann and the village of New Lenox back in the spring with their request.
The letter, on behalf of the 1,200 physicians and advanced practice providers on Silver Cross’ medical staff, expressed their desire for renaming the street in Colby’s honor, Paddock said in the release.
“And here we are just a short time later gathering for this significant moment in our Silver Cross history,” Paddock said in the release.
Michael Mutterer, Silver Cross president and chief executive officer, said in the release that “this very busy intersection” is more than the entrance to Silver Cross’ “bustling hospital campus.”
“Honorary Ruth Colby Boulevard signifies health, hope and healing to all who pass this way.” Mutterer said in the release.
“In all the time that I talked to Ruth, not one time did she ever ask for anything for herself. It was always for the hospital, somebody in need, for her staff, for the community.”
— Timothy Baldermann, mayor of New Lenox
Baldermann said in the release that honorary boulevards exists in many suburban streets, that’s he’s traveled on some of them and “wondered who those people are.”
Still, Baldermann added in the release, “It will be a long time before there’s somebody who says, ‘Who was Ruth Colby?’”
“I promise you that 100 years from now when someone is driving down this street and they see Ruth Colby Boulevard, they will see her legacy,” Baldermann said. “They may not have known who she was personally, they may not have even ever heard of her name before, but everything that you see before you and everything that will come from this point forward, is due in large part to her hard work, her effort and her commitment to people.”