Phil McNeer: Business is Growing
This profile is the fourth in a series about the people helping make our community better by serving as members of the North Sunflower Medical Foundation Board of Directors.
Phil McNeer started his outdoor business by helping put in Mosquito systems and doing some light landscaping. Over time, that grew into different building specialties, from sprinkler systems to building pools.
“We live in a rural area, so it’s hard to get someone to come out for a small job. We knew if we built someone a pavilion, they would need someone to come out to do the gutters,” Phil said. “Before you knew it, we had built out a home gutter business rain systems for entire homes.”
It’s not the only time something like this has happened to Phil McNeer. In the early 2000s, Phil had agreed to go on the board of North Sunflower Medical Center. “I joined about the time Billy Marlow did, and I learned more about hospitals than I thought I ever wanted to know,” Phil told us.
Helping NSMC Become One of the Best Rural Hospitals in America
“There were things the hospital needed to do to help them serve their patients but didn’t have the time, money, or the flexibility.” When the North Sunflower Medical Foundation was created in 2007 as a philanthropic arm of NSMC to help provide that financial flexibility, Phil agreed to serve on the board.
The Foundation has done really, really well,” Phil said. “We just help the hospitals with things they need but can’t do on their own. We have helped them get the money to buy equipment they need or improve the facilities from time to time. We also give money for education for employees to further their education. They get training to further their careers and better serve their patients.”
Seeing the hospital’s improvements over the past 17 years is the most fulfilling part of the job. “It’s the leadership. Seeing them grow from a small hospital to a state-of-the-art medical center rated as one of the best rural hospitals in America,” Phil said. People come from Cleveland and a lot further than that. That slogan, ‘Take me to Ruleville.’ It’s everywhere, and it means something to people all over the Delta.”
Phil’s wife, Morgan, is also a North Sunflower Medical Center nurse. “She’s had a calling since she was a child to be a nurse. She likes doing what she does. She wants to help people.” It’s a feeling that runs in the family.
“It’s a good little rural hospital that is doing well, and we try to take care of patients. I’m proud to be a part of it”. We’re proud Phil is an important part of the North Sunflower family too.
How to Help the North Sunflower Medical Center Foundation
If you are interested in learning more about the North Sunflower Medical Foundation or making a contribution, contact Stacy Davis at stacy.davis@nsmedicalfoundation.org or call (662) 756-4129.