On April 26, 2009, Fulton-based A.L. Lee Memorial Hospital closed for business after over 100 years of serving the Oswego County community. The once active Hospital Auxiliary administered a number of scholarships to benefit students from Oswego County pursuing careers in the medical field. Administrators chose to transfer these funds to the Community Foundation, where they can continue to honor the legacy of the devoted volunteers for which they were named.
Four scholarships were combined to create the new A.L. Lee Memorial Scholarship Fund in the names of Gertrude Case Kesterke, Yvonne Arnold and Adolph Kalafarski. Every year, the new fund will provide scholarships to a graduating senior from Fulton, Hannibal or Phoenix High Schools pursuing a career in the paramedical field. The following are those whose legacies will forever be remembered at the Community Foundation:
Gertrude Case Kesterke was a nurse and auxiliary volunteer at the hospital. Serving as director of volunteer services and the candy striper program for many years, she was well-respected for her compassion and caring for others.
Yvonne Arnold, a 35-year resident of Fulton, served as a registered nurse at the hospital for many years. After she passed away in 1970, a scholarship was created in her memory. It was funded with proceeds from the then highly-anticipated Cracker Barrel Fair, the Auxiliary’s annual fundraising festival.
Adolph Kalafarski, known to his friends as Kal, was a highlyregarded member of the Fulton community. He served in various roles on the hospital’s Board for 30 years and was an active supporter of the community and high school athletics.
A scholarship was formed by public and hospital employee donations to honor his memory when he died in 1998.
A.L. Lee Memorial Hospital began in 1903, named after Brigadier General Albert Lindley Lee, a Fulton native who commanded cavalry in the Civil War. Over the years, it provided a wide range of primary care and specialty services to hundreds of thousands of patients. The hospital ended its in-patient, emergency and out-patient services in the Spring of 2009. The building is now serving as an urgent care center and diagnostic treatment center.
“It means so much to have this piece of the hospital’s community engagement live on through the Community Foundation,” said hospital administrator Dennis Casey. “The spirit of A.L. Lee Memorial will be kept alive through the generations of students who will benefit from this fund.”