Alexian Brothers history alive in new exhibit at Elk Grove hospital
An 88-year-old member of the Alexian Brothers was at the center of a dedication ceremony at Alexian Brothers Medical Center in Elk Grove Village on Tuesday.
Br. Valentino Bianco headlined the unveiling of the new Heritage Wall, a museum quality display in the first floor corridor leading to the cafeteria, under the rotunda.
Since the early 1970s, Bianco has played a key role in the interior design of Alexian Brothers' facilities in Arlington Heights, Elk Grove and Hoffman Estates, but now he has created their legacy.
His sketches, drawn from the nearly 800-year history of the Alexian Brothers and their mission of caring for the sick and dying, served as the inspiration for a series of woodcarvings, murals and paintings.
Each piece is numbered and visitors push a button to hear an audio tour that explains the history, as written by the Alexian Brothers themselves.
“I think they explain a lot about our mission and values,” Valentino said simply.
It was John Werrbach, president and CEO of the medical center, who commissioned the work. He regularly meets with new hires at the hospital, and he always begins by telling them a brief history of the Alexian Brothers themselves.
“They have so much rich history that we're trying to emulate,” Werrbach said. “We have to continue with their legacy. The beauty of what they've done and where they've come from, just offer us roots.”
A crowd of nearly 100 physicians, nurses and hospital employees gathered for the dedication.
“These walls just come to life,” said the Rev. Bill Veith, one of the hospital's chaplains. “They say so much about our brothers and our Alexian family.”
Bianco described some of the highlights to onlookers. One entire wall features hand-carved crests that he sketched, and an artisan in the Philippines created. They are replicas of the original crests from individual Alexian Brothers houses in Belgium that predate the French Revolution.
Prisco Ortiz, the 67-year-old Filipino sculptor also created the death scene of St. Alexius under a staircase in Rome, as sketched by Bianco.
A focal point of the display is under the rotunda itself, where two murals face each other. One is a stained-glass window design, featuring scenes from the history of the Alexian Brothers and their ministering to the poor and dying over the centuries.
The other is a collage of photos — all in sepia tones — starting with the arrival of Br. Bonaventure Thelen, who established the Alexian Brothers' ministry in the United States when he arrived in Chicago in 1866.