25 July 2024

Grampians Health is calling on the community to help share their memories and celebrate Wimmera Base Hospital’s 150 years of service to the community.

Acting site manager at the Horsham campus Katie Walsgott said the celebrations should be about both the WBH team and the community it serves.

"We want to collate photographs, items and stories from as many different periods as possible and we need outside help to be able to do that effectively,” Mrs Walsgott said.

“Our Communications team has created a memory book that is currently doing the rounds of each department at the hospital and will eventually find its way into the community.

“In the meantime, people can send pictures and stories electronically by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and we will transfer them to the book.”

Mrs Walsgott said one particular team member would be the face for many of the celebrations.

“Our Operating Suite manager Jenny Thomson is celebrating 50 years of working for WBH next month,” she said.

“That means she started during the centenary celebrations and has been working here for one third of the hospital’s total existence. That is quite an outstanding achievement and hard to get your head around really.

“It’s also an extremely genuine commitment to health care in Horsham from Jenny.”

WBH librarian Michelle Pitman is on a committee to plan celebrations. She said many plans were still being finalised but others had already begun, such as the memory book, website acknowledgement and the email link.

“We are also planning a colouring competition for the local schools and kindergartens as a way of helping the younger children to recognise the significance of their hospital and its milestone,” Ms Pitman said.

“We hope to launch that in the next few days.”

Ms Pitman said the official birthday of the hospital was August 27 but the celebrations would continue beyond 2024 and throughout the milestone year.

“If anyone has items, pictures or stories that they’d like to share with us, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or people are also welcome to drop items to me at the library in the Arapiles building.

“We can photograph or scan them to have a digital record if you still want to keep the original.”

Jenny Thomson celebrates 50 years of working at Wimmera
Base Hospital in the same month of its 150 year milestone.