A Shower for the La Grange Hospital. Really?

I am familiar with bridal and baby showers, but a 1928 La Grange Journal article describing a La Grange Hospital shower puzzled me. I’d never heard of a hospital receiving gifts of various household articles.

But there it was in black and white: Temple Lumber Co. gave one dozen vases, 24 towels and 12 washcloths. The Von Rosenberg Co. donated 12 vases. Mrs. Walter Kneip’s gift was two towels, while Mrs. Ernst Reis contributed a doily. Mrs. W.L. Moore offered 12 washcloths; Mrs. A.R. Brewton, two towels; Mrs. O.E. Hagemann, two scarfs; Mrs.

L.J. Sulak and Lena, four towels; Miss Anna Kallus, two towels; Mrs. William Loessin, one pair of pillowcases; Mrs. A.W. Koenig, two pair of pillowcases; and the list went on, taking up the better part of an entire page in the newspaper.

In flowery prose, the newspaper writer declared the goods were “a profusion of gifts, articles needed in an institution of this nature.”

When they were formally presented to the hospital manager, Mrs. Guenther, RN, the unidentified leader of the community ladies, commented, “We merely wish to express our sincere confidence in the La Grange Hospital, of which we are so proud. We want the hospital to continue to prosper, to grow with the community, and we are proud to have it.”

The newspaper story went on to describe how the array of gifts moved Mrs. Guenther to tears. She told the benefactresses, “Sometimes, the work seems hard, and the battle to go forward and make the hospital more appreciated is very trying. We feel that the public does not know, does not understand, what we have undertaken.”

The event appeared to be an open house because “Every visitor was welcomed, given a hospital button, a folder which told of the day’s purpose and a print of the hospital.

“And with it, all the nurses, the one in white and the one in blue, had a smile of welcome, while the medical and surgical staff stroked their chins and looked at the outer scenes with dimmed eyes. “A good deed done and one that was appreciated.”

The story behind the news story

To learn more about this moving and meritorious community outreach of nearly a century ago, I talked to Dolores Kahlich Guenther Vacek. The 94-year-old La Grange resident is the daughter-in-law of pioneer La Grange doctor and surgeon Dr. Frank J. Guenther and his wife, Antoinette Guenther, RN.

“Oh, yes,” Dolores told me. “It was customary back then for women in the community to support the La Grange Hospital by providing gifts like linens each year to celebrate Hospital Day. The women asked local businesses to contribute, as well

“My father-in-law, Dr. Frank J. Guenther, started and owned the La Grange Hospital, you know,” Dolores added. Dr. Frank, as he was affectionately called, was born in Schulenburg in 1885 and lived nearby until his mother’s death. At that time, the youngster moved down the road to Moulton. His older brother, Dr. J.G. Guenther, practiced medicine there, and his oldest brother, Ferdinand P. Guenther, was superintendent of Lavaca County Schools. He tutored little Frank, who was an outstanding student.

Young Frank was interested in medicine like his older brother. In 1909, Frank graduated with a Doctor of Medicine degree from Tulane University in New Orleans. That was no small feat for a young man from a small Texas town. In 1915, Dr. Frank married Antoinette Koehler, a nurse from Houston whom the Guenthers employed

Dr. Frank practiced medicine with his brother in Moulton until 1920 when he purchased the La Grange home and property of Mrs. Delphine Byrnes. That residence, in the northern part of the city, was remodeled to meet the requirements for a hospital, and a charter was obtained from the State of Texas. In 1921, another state charter established a Nurses’ Training School at the La Grange Hospital. (Twenty-five young women had graduated from the program by the time it closed in 1932.)

In 1926, Dr. Frank’s older brother left Moulton to become half-owner of the La Grange Hospital. The following year, his son, Dr. J.C. Guenther, moved to La Grange and joined the hospital and the Guenther Clinic. In 1927, the La Grange Hospital was enlarged from 25 to 50 beds. Dr. Guenther and his wife traveled to Europe for two months in 1928 to enhance his surgical skills by studying with different physicians at different medical institutions.