Hospitality Liaison Earns National Award and Spotlight on Famous Times Square Sign!

It’s not every day that a Sarasota Memorial employee wins a national award and is featured on the iconic NASDAQ marquis in Times Square in New York City. But SMH Hospitality Liaison Esperanza “Espy” Beulieu recently was singled out for these special honors, thanks to her exceptional service.

Espy recently won the “Cleaning to Advance the Patient Experience” (CAPE) Award, a national honor given by Cintas, a vendor that works with SMH’s Hospitality Services Division.

Espy, who’s been a member of Team SMH for 12 years, was one of only 10 people nationwide to win the recognition, out of more than 700 nominations.

Colleagues from Environmental Services, Infection Prevention & Control and Women’s and Children’s Services all submitted glowing nominations to Cintas. Here a few excerpts from Espy’s nominations:

• “Espy wears an invisible superhero cape to work every day. She is armed with a big smile, incredible warmth, and the strength to overcome challenges.”
• “During tougher COVID times, Espy became EVS’ COVID ambassador, equipped with knowledge from Infection Control as well as a great deal of positive energy. She helped ensure that proper disinfection procedures and safety protocols were followed by team members, whom she trained and supported as a preceptor and mentor. Espy was the glue and the synergy we needed through all of the changes.”
• “Espy’s passion for top-quality care is evident on the Mother-Baby, NICU and Labor & Delivery units. She mentors new staff assigned to the “EVS Stork Team” and teaches them all of the nuances involved in providing excellent service to the specialized floors.”

Hospitality Liaison Espy Beaulieu, third from left, received $2,500 from Hospitality vendor Cintas, who also donated another $2,500 to the Sarasota Memorial Health Care Foundation in her honor. With Espy, from left, are Cintas rep Herb Martin, SMH Environmental Services Director Greg Rosenberger, SMH CEO David Verinder, Sarasota Memorial Health Care Foundation President Stacey Corley, and Cintas rep Angie Van Slavens. Espy also was featured on the famous NASDAQ marquis in Times Square earlier this year (pictured at top of page), along with the other winners of the Cintas’ national “Cleaning to Advance the Patient Experience” (CAPE) Award.

The CAPE Award celebrates environmental service technicians across the U.S. who go above and beyond each day to make a difference in the lives of health care patients, staff and guests. The honor is awarded to staff described as highly motivated, energetic and reliable, with the ability to adapt to meet changing needs. Additionally, the winners all worked diligently to quickly learn and adopt stringent COVID-19 cleaning protocols and guidelines to help maintain the safety of patients and staff at their facilities.

Each of the winners not only were featured on the NASDAQ marquis earlier this year, but they also won $2,500 from Cintas. The company also donated $2,500 to the Sarasota Memorial Health Care Foundation in honor of Espy’s national recognition.

As another colleague summed up: “She might only be 5 foot 2, but Espy truly stands heads and shoulders above our 8,700-member staff, and is well-respected and praised everywhere she goes.”

Congratulations, Espy, for this well-deserved honor!