How do you honor a career that has impacted thousands of lives and spanned 40 years at Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Network?
Good Shepherd recently hosted an outdoor retirement celebration for Executive Director Frank Hyland, MSPT, a relentless advocate for patients, residents and families, who retires on Oct. 15. At the celebration, President & CEO Michael Spigel, PT, MHA, surprised Hyland and staff members in attendance by announcing that the Health & Technology Center in South Allentown is now The Hyland Center for Health & Technology.
“Frank has been a force — not just for Good Shepherd, but a force nationally — in the use of creative and innovative therapies to find solutions for our patients. We know the power that he had in creating the essence of what the Health & Technology Center is. And so, we are renaming the Health & Technology Center to be The Hyland Center for Health & Technology,” says Spigel. “And we pledge, Frank, to continue your legacy in providing leading-edge innovation, expertise and, of course, compassionate care, not just in the halls of The Hyland Center, but really throughout all of Good Shepherd. That building and that name and whatever that building may be in 40 years or 100 years — it is going to be The Hyland Center for Health & Technology.”
Located at 850 S. 5th Street, The Hyland Center for Health & Technology is one of the region’s premier outpatient rehabilitation facilities, offering a fusion of comprehensive rehabilitation services and technology. Patients and families access multiple services, including physicians specializing in physical medicine and rehabilitation (physiatry), neurorehabilitation, pediatric rehabilitation, adult rehabilitation and other outpatient services, all under one roof. The building also is home to Optimal Fitness, an adaptive fitness center that supports the fitness and training goals of community members living with disabilities.
In addition to naming the building in his honor, Good Shepherd commissioned a painting of The Hyland Center by renowned local artist Ann Elizabeth Schlegel for Hyland’s retirement home in Maine.
“You have no idea how much this means to me,” says Hyland. “I know it was 40 years ago, but I still remember my first day at Good Shepherd. Our rehab department back then, we had 12 staff. Four of the 12 are still working stronger than ever.”
“For the past 40 years, I have been blessed with the greatest job in the world,” adds Hyland. “I have had a job that I absolutely loved. I worked for an organization that I loved. … I will always be connected to Good Shepherd. I’m absolutely positive that our future is great; our future is golden.”
