Four Managers and the Belhaven Hospital | Eastern North Carolina Now

    There has not been a lot a talk about Belhaven not having a hospital since the first of the year. However, things are moving forward in the effort to re open the hospital. The six million dollar loan is in place, the offer of the $643,000 for eminent domain is in place. The contract to run the hospital is in place. The Town of Belhaven has hired a lawyer who is to provide a variety of services.

    The whole project is stopped because four people refuse to deed the hospital to the Town of Belhaven.

    Some interesting things have been observed while making preparations to move ahead. It appears, there are now no members of the non profit Pantego Creek, LLC other that the four managers. If this turns out to be true there are only four people denying Belhaven a hospital. They are the appointed mangers. Those people are Brantley Tillman, Deb Saparrow, Darien Armstrong and Lynn Ross.

    The fact that there are only four managers standing in the way of progress is astounding. What happened to the more than 100 community leaders who were the stock holders in the non profit hospital. It looks like they got lost or disenfranchised when Vidant deeded the hospital property to Pantego Creek, LLC. Someone overlooked the members whose families served so long and gave so much of their time and money to the Belhaven Hospital.

    How were these four people picked? Do they have special insight and skills in the running of a hospital or a medical practice or providing first aid. Do they have a halo provided from heaven, hades or Vidant? Why were these four picked and why are they denying medical services to their neighbors?

    Denial of the hospital to Belhaven is even more bewildering in the face of the facts. The sole purpose of the this non profit LLC is to provide medical service to the Belhaven area. Neither Brantley Tillman, Deb Sparrow, Darien Armstrong nor Lynn Ross have personally invested any money in the Hospital. They personally own nothing and cannot loose any of their personal money if they were to deed the hospital to the town. Neither they nor any organization they belong to paid any money to have the hospital property deeded to them. The Pantego Creek, LLC got the property for nothing, free of charge. These people have nothing invested and nothing to loose.

    More facts. The Town and people of Belhaven can loose nothing should the newly opened hospital fail. The USDA has agreed to use the hospital building and grounds as the sole collateral for the 6 million dollar loan.

    Let's see. The property cost them nothing and they can loose nothing. So, why not deed the property and allow someone to provide a hospital, and about 50 jobs to Belhaven?

    It is difficult to understand how Brantley Tillman, Deb Sparrow, Lynn Ross and Darien Armstrong can claim to have superior knowledge and the gall to be able to deny approximately 15,000 people hospital care and economic prosperity. There has to be more to this than meets the eye.