MERCY in Joplin

At the 52^nd Annual Marketing Conference (2-22-2013) by the American Marketing Association, St. Louis chapter, Barb Meyer, Vice President Marketing and Communications and Nancy Schnoebelen, Director of Advancement Communications for Mercy Healthcare shared some details of the unique challenges of crisis communications after a catastrophe.

An EF5 tornado struck Joplin, Missouri in the late afternoon of Sunday, May 22, 2011. It reached a maximum width ¾ of a  mile during its path through the southern part of the city. It rapidly intensified and tracked eastward across the city, and then continued eastward across Interstate 44 into rural portions of Jasper and Newton County. More than160 people were killed  and over 1,100 were injured. It was the deadliest tornado in America since 1947.

Mercy had a hospital located in the center of this path of this devastation. Barb Meyer and Nancy Schoenbelen shared highlights of Mercy’s response, communications challenges, and remarkable acts of kindness and charitable contributions in the wake of that event. The good news is that they are looking forward to a brand new hospital opening in 2014 and Mercy workers in Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas and Oklahoma have a stronger bond as a result of working together through that crisis.

Thank you Barb and Nancy for sharing that story of remarkable leadership!