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At the dedication ceremony for the new Oregon Burn Center, from left: Sue Degerness (wife of Blaine Degerness), Portland General Electric CEO Peggy Fowler, Local 125 member Blaine Degerness, Oregon gubernatorial candidate and former Supreme Court Justice Ted Kulongoski, and IBEW Local 125 Business Manager William D. Miller, Jr.

IBEW Honored For Its Support

In Portland, Oregon, a newly expanded and modernized Oregon Burn Center at Legacy Emanuel Hospital opened February 21, 2002and IBEW Local 125 members were recognized as major supporters of the acclaimed state-of-the-art facility.

Local 125 members in Portland have supported the work of the Burn Center for nearly a decade, and in 1997 they initiated a big fund-raising effort for the new construction.

As a tribute to IBEWs enthusiastic support for the $5 million project, two of three new wings at the 20,000-square-foot center are jointly named in honor of Local 125.

"This is a great day for Oregon," said Local 125 Business Manager William D. Miller, Jr. at the dedication ceremony. "Were proud to have been such a big part of this project. The Burn Center has provided our members with excellent care when they needed it and we were glad to help give something back."

The new intensive care wing is co-named for Local 125 member Blaine Degerness (who was treated at the burn center for critical injuries sustained in an on-the-job accident as a journeyman lineman at Portland General Electric in 1997); for PGE and its employees; and for Local 125. Last year, the Journal reported on the initial phase of Local 125s role at the forefront of a grassroots effort to raise funds for the center that helped save Brother Degerness life. (See "Burn Center Grows With IBEWs Help," IBEW Journal, May 2001.)

"It was amazing that IBEW members from around the country, as far away as New Yorkpeople who will never see Portlanddonated to the center when they saw my story in the Journal," Degerness said. "I guess thats why they call the IBEW a brotherhood."

Degerness acts as a volunteer counselor for burn patients when called upon by the center staff. "Whenever they see a situation that fits, they call me," said Degerness.

One of the Best in the Nation

"The new Oregon Burn Center is the only unit of its kind between Sacramento, Seattle and Salt Lake City," said Marc Anderson, Local 125 press secretary. "It replaces a 5,000 square foot facility in use since 1973."

The new center, four times the size of the original facility, is recognized as one of the top such centers in the nation.

"With new technology and population growth, we needed to update and enlarge our facility," said Robert Pallari, president and CEO of Legacy Health System. "In the New Oregon Burn Center, you will see the latest technology and equipment to treat and care for burn patients."

Burn Prevention Program

In 2000, the center established a Burn Education and Prevention Program with the fund-raising support of Local 125.

"Because IBEW Local 125 provided the main source of funding, we began this program with a decision to focus on the high-risk workers, specifically the professional electrical worker," says Jay Caulk, coordinator of the Burn Center Education and Prevention Program.

The 2000 Benefit Golf Classic raised $62,000 to support the burn prevention program, Caulk says. "The idea of one individual never becoming a patient because of education makes all the work and dollars raised worthwhile."

In the fund-raising efforts, Local 125 also partnered with company-employers like PacifiCorp, Pacific Power and PGE. The new centers patient care wing is co-named in honor of Local 125 and employees of PacifiCorp, Pacific Power and PacifiCorp Foundation for Learning.