About Us
Early years
On October 15, 1956 Ward Memorial Hospital opened its doors as a 35-bed facility with C.A. Woody serving as administrator.For the next two decades the hospital grew, both in size and its capabilities in providing health-care for the entire West Texas area. Then, on April 19, 1977, three powerful tornados touched down - in and around Monahans, lifted and came together as one just above Ward Memorial Hospital.
The tornado completely demolished the new west wing and much of the Coronary Care Unit, causing damage estimated at 3 million dollars and reducing the hospital from 49-beds to a "patched-up" 30-bed facility. Not only was the hospital devastated, the entire city suffered from the effects of the tornado.
Monahans in the 1990s was quieter and smaller than the explosive oil-boom version seen in later Permian Basin years. It was more stable, more family-oriented, and had that very distinct “everybody’s connected somehow” small-town West Texas identity.
Despite the many pressures of the early decades, Ward Memorial Hospital remained a critical healthcare lifeline for Monahans and the surrounding region. Employees continued balancing the close-knit culture of rural healthcare with the demands of a rapidly changing healthcare environment — providing care during one of the most difficult periods modern hospitals had faced in generations.
