In Effingham, Ill. (pop. 8,000), they will never forget the fire that, one April night in 1949, burned St. Anthony's Hospital to the ground, and took 75 lives. "Last week they were reminded of the tragedy by a fact as hopeful as a phoenix.
The day after the fire, a Protestant oilman named J. William Everhart went to see the town's Roman Catholic priest, the Rev. John Goff. Everhart told Father Goff that he wanted to help rebuild the Catholic hospital.
Oilman Everhart began by organizing a ten-man committee, none of them Catholics. With the help of such groups as Rotary, Kiwanis, Lions...
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