Former Gov. Tom Ridge to be Honored at St. Barnabas' Founder's Day

As the first U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, 43rd Pennsylvania governor and a Vietnam veteran, Thomas J. Ridge will share his firsthand accounts of the heroism surrounding the events of Sept. 11, 2001, and his perspective of America’s resilience.

Recognized for his patriotism and service to others, Ridge will be the featured speaker and Hance Award recipient during St. Barnabas Charities 113th Founder’s Day celebration on Thursday, May 2. 

The Hance Award is St. Barnabas Health System’s highest honor named after its visionary founder, Gouverneur P. Hance.

Born in Pittsburgh’s Steel Valley, Ridge was raised in a working-class family. He earned a scholarship to Harvard University and after his first year of law school, he was drafted into the U.S. Army and served in Vietnam.

He was two-time governor of Pennsylvania and became the first Assistant to the President for Homeland Security following the tragic events of Sept. 11, 2001.

Ridge went on to become the first Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

President George W. Bush stated “he had the strength, experience, and personal commitment and authority to accomplish this critical mission.”

Ridge is also the founder and CEO of Ridge Global, a security consulting firm.

Festivities for St. Barnabas Charities’ Founder’s Day will begin with a 10 a.m. welcoming ceremony at St. Barnabas Nursing Home at 5827 Meridian Road in Gibsonia.

Ridge will be greeted by William V. Day, president of St. Barnabas Health System, who will present him with a key to the St. Barnabas campus followed by a tour.

During the ceremony a student chosen through the St. Barnabas Charities Founder’s Day Essay Contest will read his or her winning essay on the topic of homeland security and veterans to Ridge and an audience of U.S. veterans living at St. Barnabas’ retirement communities, living assistance and nursing facilities.

That evening, Ridge will be the featured speaker at a fundraising dinner at the Marriott Pittsburgh North in Cranberry Township.

The evening begins with a cocktail reception and silent auction at 5:30 p.m., followed by dinner at 7 p.m. Tickets are available by calling 724-443-0700 Ext. 5258 or by visiting www.stbarnabashealthsystem.com

Proceeds benefit the St. Barnabas Free Care Fund, which in 2012 provided more than $4.5 million in free care to poor and low-income patients at St. Barnabas Nursing Home, Valencia Woods at St. Barnabas and The Arbors at St. Barnabas. 

At the conclusion of the evening, Day will present Ridge with the Hance Award, named for St Barnabas founder Gouverneur P. Hance (1871-1954), the lay Episcopalian brother who founded St. Barnabas in 1900 as a refuge for incurably ill men and boys who could not afford their care. 

Each year, the Hance Award is presented to a person of national acclaim who exemplifies Hance’s ideals of benevolence, patriotism and service to others.  Among the past Hance Award recipients are entertainer Debbie Reynolds, Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, first lady Barbara Bush, astronaut “Buzz” Aldrin and President Gerald Ford.