Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC) will honor two distinguished individuals from the greater Bennington area at its annual Harvest Ball, Saturday, Sept. 7. The health system will recognize longtime Hoosick Falls physician, Dr. Philip Martinez, with the SVHC 2013 Health Care Leadership Award. At the same event, the health system also will recognize local businessman, philanthropist, and entrepreneur Norman Greenberg and the Greenberg family with the SVHC 2013 Distinguished Community Service Award.
“This year’s recipients are inextricably linked with the communities in which they live,” said Thomas Dee, president and CEO of Southwestern Vermont Health Care. “Dr. Martinez’s name is synonymous with outstanding medical care and a deep, abiding commitment to the community of Hoosick Falls. The same is true for Norm Greenberg, who built his father’s business into Bennington’s premier home improvement center but also is known for land conservation and a deep desire to give back to his community.”
For many years, Dr. Philip Martinez was health care in Hoosick Falls. He served two years in the U.S. Army at the close of World War II, then completed his undergraduate degree three years later. By 1956, Phil Martinez had completed medical school, his internship, and a surgical residency. That year, he joined the medical staff at Putnam Memorial Hospital and set up practice in Hoosick Falls where he continued to be the town's main physician until he retired in 1999 after 43 years in practice.
“Our health system owes a great deal to Dr. Martinez,” Dee added. “He served as president and vice president of the medical staff, presided as chairman of several medical staff committees, helped start our medical library, and served as our chief of staff for six years. He also served on our board of trustees. The community, however, knows him better as the doctor who helped organize the Hoosick Falls Rescue Squad and led the town's little league. Moreover, generations of children knew him as the physician for Hoosick Falls Central School, a post he held for nearly 50 years.”
In 1949, Norman Greenberg launched a new business concept in Bennington, a single store that combined hardware, plumbing, and electrical supplies with building materials, lumber, and paint. The store was a home improvement center 30 years before Home Depot’s founding. An immediate success, H. Greenberg & Son expanded several times throughout the 1950s and 60s, eventually occupying roughly 22,000 square feet of space in downtown Bennington as well an additional 32,000-square-foot store in North Adams.
Mr. Greenberg has served on the board of Southern Vermont College and has been active with United Counseling Service and the Bennington County Industrial Corporation. The Greenberg family, including Mr. Greenberg, his wife Selma, and their sons Edward, David, and Steve, have brought leadership and support to organizations throughout the Bennington region, including to Southwestern Vermont Regional Cancer Center, Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, the Bennington Museum, and Southern Vermont College. The family also was instrumental in preserving nearly 100 acres of undeveloped land on the south side of Bennington in 2003. The area, called the Norman and Selma Greenberg Conservation Reserve, is managed by the One World Conservation Center. The reserve has at least three distinct ecosystems: a meadow that over 15 butterfly species call home; wetlands with trout, mink, otter, beaver, and water-dwelling wildflowers; and upland forest with varying soil types, each giving rise to distinct tree cover.
“Mr. Greenberg is a business pioneer,” Dee said. “He led a changing industry, yet has never taken his eye off what he could do to make his community a better place. Whether working to provide the best building materials at an affordable price or ensuring that future generations will be able to appreciate the significance of the natural world, Mr. Greenberg has held himself to the highest standards. We all can learn from his example of how to lead during changing times while providing a legacy to his community for the years to come.”
SVHC sought nominations for the awards from the public, the physician community, health system employees, and SVHC’s board of trustees. The Southwestern Vermont Health Care Foundation’s Board of Directors selected the award recipients from the nominations. SVHC will present the awards at the Fourth Annual Harvest Ball, an event sponsored by the SVHC Foundation. The ball will take place on Saturday, Sept. 7, at the 1768 Hubbell Homestead at Colgate Park. All proceeds will benefit Southwestern Vermont Health Care. For tickets or more information, contact the SVHC Foundation at (802) 447-5017.
The Southwestern Vermont Health Care Foundation is the charitable giving and fundraising arm of Southwestern Vermont Health Care, an integrated health system serving Bennington and Windham Counties in Vermont and nearby communities in New York and Massachusetts. In addition to the SVHC Foundation, SVHC consists of Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, the Centers for Living and Rehabilitation, the VNA & Hospice of SVHC, and the SVMC Northshire and Deerfield Valley campuses. It also includes a multispecialty medical group called Dartmouth-Hitchcock Putnam Physicians operated in partnership with Dartmouth-Hitchcock.
