County Commissioner Cliff Eason was welcomed as the newest member of the Bradley Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center board of directors Tuesday night.

Eason, who once worked in the facility’s social service department, was appointed to the position to replace former Commissioner Howard Thompson.

The board also approved a memorial bench and landscaping in memory of former board member Ann Martin.

Martin served on the Bradley Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center board of directors for 15 years. She resigned her position in November of 2010 because of failing health and passed away shortly after.

In addition to serving on the board, Martin was an educator for Bradley County Schools, supervisor of elementary education for the system and also worked for the county.

The memorial will consist of a stone bench with an engraving for Martin, as well as accompanying landscaping.

In total the project is projected to cost around $1,600 and will come out of the facility’s operating expenses account.

“I feel this is a small amount toward the memory of Ann Martin,” stated Joe Newcomb, administrator for the center.

Conceptually, the inscription will state “In memory of Ann Martin,” and gives the dates she served on the board.

“I just feel that people, years from now, should know who she was and what she accomplished,” added the board’s president, John Stanbery.

The board also discussed a misconception in the community that they had encountered about the facility only being used for those unable to afford other care.

Those present felt there needs to be some effort by the facility to get the word out about the center and the services it provides.

“I think very few people in the community know that we get no financial support from the county,” Stanbery stated.

He went on to explain that every dollar of revenue generated by the facility goes directly back into patient care and allows the Bradley Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center to maintain the highest worker-to-patient ratio in the area.

This comes on the heels of a slightly down month to start the fiscal year, with the facility reporting a lower average census and fewer patients with Medicare.

Sandra Brock, controller for the center, also informed the board members the instillation of the new phone lines and wireless Internet were on schedule and both projects would up and running for residents and their families very soon.