President’s Corner
February 12, 2026
As we move into the first quarter of the year, I want to take a moment to thank everyone who continues to support and engage with SMSHE.
First, thank you to all who attended our Annual Christmas Party and Business Meeting. It was great to see such strong participation, and on behalf of the board, I want to extend a sincere thank-you to our sponsors whose continued support allows SMSHE to provide meaningful education, networking, and social opportunities throughout the year.
I would also like to thank everyone who attended our educational session yesterday on freeze/thaw cycles, hosted at McLaren. A special thank-you to RAM Construction for sponsoring the event and to McLaren for opening their doors and supporting SMSHE’s educational mission. The discussion and engagement during this session truly reflect the value of learning from one another in real-world healthcare environments. Additionally, thank you to Candace Kitchen with Total Door Systems for her January educational presentation, “Integrated Fire and Smoke Door Systems: Specifying Your Own Safety Net.” The session provided valuable insight into compliance, safety, and best practices that directly impact patient/staff safety and overall compliance.
Looking ahead, we encourage healthcare professionals who are interested in hosting a future SMSHE educational event at their facility to come forward. Hospital-hosted events are a tremendous opportunity to showcase best practices and strengthen collaboration across our membership. Likewise, if you have ideas for future educational topics, please share them.
I also want to recognize our upcoming social event, the SMSHE Fowling Event on February 19th. These events are an important part of building relationships across our chapter, and we hope to see many of you there.
On the governance side, I’d like to share an important update. An amendment to the SMSHE bylaws has added an Associate Member Board position to oversee the Sustainability Committee. This committee will be responsible for leading SMSHE’s participation in the ASHE Energy to Care Chapter Challenge, a key initiative aligned with our goal of achieving ASHE Elite Platinum status. The Associate Member Board position that chairs the Awards Committee is also open; this role is responsible for managing and preparing documentation to keep SMSHE an ASHE accredited chapter.
Associate members who are interested in these board positions and contributing to the leadership within SMSHE are encouraged to submit their resume to the executive board; [email protected], [email protected], and [email protected]. The application deadline is FEBRUARY 28th. Please indicate which position you are interested in with your submission.
As a reminder, please take a moment to update or renew your annual SMSHE membership to ensure continued access to educational programming, advocacy updates, and chapter communications.
For information on upcoming events, advocacy initiatives, and chapter resources, please visit www.smshehealthcare.org. The advocacy section highlights how SMSHE and ASHE continue to support healthcare facility professionals at the local, state, and national levels.
Thank you again for your continued involvement and support.
Jim Krzywiecki
