The American Heart Association presented, for the first time ever, the Jeff St. Clair Heart of the Community Award to its namesake, SMC President/CEO Mr. Jeff St. Clair.
“We wanted to express our deep appreciation for the significant impact Mr. St. Clair has had on our organization and for his decades of support, leadership, and fund-raising efforts,” said Christin LeBouef, Executive Director, American Heart Association – Gulf Coast, North & Central Florida. “As Mr. St. Clair prepares for his retirement adventures, we felt the best way to acknowledge his impact was to name this award after him and make him the first recipient.”

The award will continue to be presented in Mr. St. Clair’s name annually to a volunteer involved with the American Heart Association in a leadership role and who significantly contributes to the success of the organization at a high level.

“It’s an honor to have an award named after you,” said Mr. St. Clair. “In the healthcare industry, cardiac care is an important life-saving service we offer to our community. I’ve seen the impact that research has had in helping bring new technologies to the forefront of what we do and helping our medical professionals save more lives. This research would not be possible without the efforts of the American Heart Association in large part.”

This year marks Mr. St. Clair’s final year with Springhill Medical Center as he is set to retire soon. His fund-raising efforts for AHA’s Heart Walk have resulted in being recognized as the top fund-raiser each year for more than 15 years running. In recognition of his leadership and impact, his colleagues at the hospital plan to come together as a team to participate once again in the 2025 Heart Walk supporting the mission of the American Heart Association.

The Heart Walk is more than just a walk — it’s a chance to honor those we love, raise awareness about heart disease and stroke, and make a difference in our community. We invite you to join our Springhill Medical Center team, and walk alongside us on Nov. 8 on the University of South Alabama campus.

Springhill Medical Center is a 270-bed acute care hospital accredited by The Joint Commission. Now in our 50th Year of Healthcare Excellence, Springhill has grown and expanded our services in the southwest Alabama market while maintaining more nurses to each patient for a personal approach. The medical center provides full surgical capabilities including open-heart and robotic surgery, as well as complete diagnostic capabilities. Today, SMC includes the hospital, a unique and comprehensive heart center, senior residence, sleep medicine center, cancer center, an ENT and multi-specialty surgery center, wound care and hyperbaric center, and an emergency department staffed by all board-certified emergency medicine physicians.