Seated together around a long table before touring the Pat and Scot Kaufman Healthcare Center on the NCH Barbara and Steve Slaggie Campus, the women of the Marco Island Woman’s Club laughed easily with one another, finished each other’s stories, and reflected on nearly six decades of service to the island they call home.
Long before Marco Island became what it is today, the woman’s club was helping shape its foundation, supporting libraries, scholarships, community initiatives, and healthcare efforts that would help define life on the island for generations.
Now, as the organization prepares to celebrate its 60th Jubilee this fall, members say they are thinking not only about the past, but about what comes next.
“We really just want to make the community even better than it already is,” said past president Sue Purvis. “If you improve the community, you’re making your little mark, making the world a better place.”
Investing in What Sustains a Community
“If you don’t have good healthcare and you don’t have good education, you’re probably not going to have a vibrant community,” said Sharyn Kampmeyer.
For nearly sixty years, the women of the club have helped support the organizations and programs that sustain Marco Island life. Supporting healthcare, they said, feels like a natural extension of that legacy.
Giving Back to the Island That Gave Them So Much
For many members, supporting NCH was about investing in a trusted community resource that would strengthen healthcare access for future generations. Over the past three years, the Marco Island Woman’s Club has contributed $15,000 toward NCH healthcare initiatives on Marco Island, including support for the new urgent care facility.
When plans for the new urgent care facility began to take shape, many within the organization immediately recognized both the need and the opportunity.
“We felt it was time,” said Sharyn Kampmeyer. “We saw the information [that Marco was] finally getting somewhere new and how much it would help the community. It just seemed like the right thing to do.”
The women described their trust in NCH as something built over many years through personal experience, visibility in the community, and confidence that the organization continues investing in Marco Island’s future.
Several members had already used the urgent care center themselves or brought loved ones there for care, experiences that reinforced their trust in NCH and its continued commitment to expanding healthcare access on Marco Island.
Investing in the Future of Healthcare on Marco Island
That vision closely aligns with what NCH continues to build on Marco Island. As part of its long-term investment in the community, NCH recently commemorated 40 years of care on the island and is expanding healthcare access through its new 25,000-square-foot urgent care facility and renovations to the existing rehabilitation and outpatient center. The new facility includes advanced imaging, private exam rooms, board-certified emergency physicians, and expanded space for specialty care access like cardiology.
Rather than speaking only about the building itself, many members described what the facility represents for the future of the island: greater peace of mind, easier access to care, and the ability for residents to remain in the community they love as they age.
Several women spoke with pride about the club’s naming recognition inside the new urgent care center, viewing it not as recognition for any one individual, but as a reflection of generations of women who have quietly invested their time, energy, and resources into strengthening Marco Island.
“It’s nice when there’s something specific that we can really focus in on and support,” said Sue Purvis.
“There’s always a place to go when you have any kind of problem,” said Carol Schwalje. “And especially now that we’re looking to get specialists, that’s really wonderful. So many people don’t want to leave Marco Island to go to Naples.”
The Difference Close-to-Home Care Can Make
Members spoke passionately about what they hope the future of healthcare on Marco Island looks like: expanded women’s health services, additional specialists, diagnostic imaging, and more opportunities for residents to receive care without leaving the island.
But perhaps most importantly, they spoke about how they hope people feel when they walk through the doors of NCH.
“I just want them to know it’s a caring place that’s going to take care of them,” said Tammy Barstow quietly. “And that we helped contribute to having it here on the island to take care of our community.”
For the women seated around the table, healthcare is deeply connected to community, trust, family, and quality of life.
A Partnership Rooted in Community Care
As the conversation came to a close, several women reflected once more on what it meant to support a project so deeply tied to the future of Marco Island.
“Every little bit helps,” said Sharyn Kampmeyer. “Even walking into NCH now, I think, ‘I helped with this.’”