Emplify Health’s Perez-Guerra retiring from Friendship Hospital

Emplify Health's Perez-Guerra retiring from Friendship Hospital

Soon, things will be a little different around Emplify Health by Gundersen Friendship Hospital - and the greater Adams, Friendship and Westfield communities.

Eight years after taking the hospital's lead position, administrator Frank Perez-Guerra is retiring. A calm presence in the healthcare setting and a stalwart of community involvement, his final day is Jan. 31.

That day will mark the conclusion of a 30-year career with Emplify Health, stretching back to the system's days when Gundersen Clinic and Lutheran Hospital merged. Though more than 20 of those 30 years were spent working for the system in La Crosse, his final years in Friendship he considered some of his most fulfilling.

"I love what I do, but I know what I have to do," Perez-Guerra said of his impending retirement.

A system stalwart

Perez-Guerra began his career at Lutheran Hospital in La Crosse in the human resources department for the clinic and as the director of recruitment for the hospital. Eventually, he moved into a business partner role (HROM), then took over employee and labor relations, handling work with the unions, various operational departments and with the executive committee. Following that role, he became human resources manager, then director, and eventually executive director of the department.

During Perez-Guerra's work in his human resources role, he was involved with the merger and acquisitions of most of the current critical access hospitals in the Gundersen system, including Friendship. Eventually, he was asked if he was interested in the administrator position at the Friendship hospital. He was.

"The individuals I worked with were all very kind and very open and wanted to make a difference in how this hospital was going to be situated for the future," Perez-Guerra said, "so these were the kinds of things that made it a neat place. When the offer came, there wasn't a second decision. I'm going."

Once Perez-Guerra committed to the position, it didn't take him long to immerse himself in the community. Though he lives in Onalaska - and will retire back there - he maintained a residence in the area, which kept him ingrained in the community.

"It's a very welcoming community, so it was easy to start to meet people, businesspeople in town, and try to figure out what the hospital can do different, but also what we could do to make an impact on how the community could do things different," he said. "There are a lot of good people who want to do the right things."

Tadd Wormet is the hospital board president and has worked with Perez-Guerra in various capacities during his time in Friendship. He saw firsthand Perez-Guerra's vigor to make a positive difference.

"We were always trying to figure out a way to make the community a better place to support not only the hospital, but the schools and the businesses," Wormet said. "He's continued to have that energy about those things through it all."

A community player

From the beginning of his tenure, Perez-Guerra made relationships in the community a priority, none more important than the one he built with the Adams-Friendship School District and district administrator Tom Wermuth.

Under his leadership, the hospital established a mentorship program with the elementary school where Emplify Health by Gundersen Friendship Area employees would meet with select students weekly to talk, play games and generally enjoy each other's company - a program he also took part in.

"That's huge, not only helping get that off the ground, but being an active participant is pretty cool," Wermuth said, adding, "We have so many students who need mentoring. … We know that having connections with another adult is a tremendous asset and helps students build resiliency."

Perez-Guerra also played a part in establishing the Health Career Academy at the high school, which gives students an inside look at medical careers and pairs it with classroom training.

"It's a huge benefit to our students," Wermuth said. "We know students, when they exit high school, if they have a pathway established, they're more likely to be successful."

And the newest school-hospital venture, the mobile pediatrics clinic, is in the process of ramping up.

"It's going to be a huge benefit to our students and our staff members," Wermuth said. "It's such a need. We have such a healthcare access issue in our community."

Knowing how interconnected the hospital is with the school and the rest of the cities they serve, Perez-Guerra spent nearly his entire tenure here serving on the Adams County Economic Development Authority (EDA). He realized that for the hospital to thrive, the community must work to attract new businesses.

Executive director Daric Smith says it's good for the hospital to know what's happening in the community and with economic development, and the opposite is true, as well.

"Frank has been extremely involved, and that's one of the things I like about him is that when he decides to be involved, he's very hands on," Smith said. "I love that Frank is a very curious guy. He always asks questions. He loves to communicate."

And he did so in his signature level-headed way. Wormet, the board president, said his lasting impression of Perez-Guerra is that when things were challenging, be it with staffing issues, budgetary concerns or mergers, he always kept a calm demeanor.

"Usually when it's stressful, you can read it, and with Frank, you couldn't see that," Wormet said. "Frank's always just been cool, calm and collected."

He added that Perez-Guerra never acted in his own interests, but rather, what was best for the organization.

"Frank has been a really good fit for this area and for the hospital and clinics. We're going to miss him," he said.

Saying goodbye

Perez-Guerra plans to take it easy for a couple months, but he isn't one to sit around. Initially, he'll round out his term on the county EDA board and then plans to do some different work - though on his terms. But most importantly, he'll spend more time with his wife, children and grandchildren.

"Trying to have a marriage on a day and a half each week isn't the easiest thing," he said. "And I have my grandkids in town now. And maybe a little golf. Okay, a lot of golf."

When asked what was most rewarding about working in his role in Friendship, he didn't hesitate.

"To me, it's all about the people," Perez-Guerra said. "Part of that is working with the staff and removing barriers for them when they needed. We worked hard together. I credit the staff for making several transitions over the eight years I've been here. It's worked out well for all of us."

The staff, the partnerships, the communities. They've all left an impression on him that won't soon fade.

"As I walk away, I'll miss it," he said.

Perez-Guerra will hand off the position to Lori Wittig, who was recently named the new hospital administrator.

"I know there's a good future ahead," he concluded.