Deb Malewski
Contributing Writer

Some employees become so much a part of their workplace that you can’t imagine them doing anything else. That’s the case with Lindsay Peters, who for 11 years has worked as the Director of Marketing and Development at Eaton Rapids Medical Center. Peters is moving on to the Michigan Health and Hospital Association (MHA) beginning June 2 as their Senior Director of Field Engagement.
“I’m really excited about making a bigger impact on healthcare and to be able to assist and support hospitals statewide,” Peters said. The MHA has been recognized as being among the best places to work in healthcare in the nation. Peters will also be finishing her master’s degree in health care administration in August.
Peters explained her new position as a “convener,” one who connects people or hospitals to the resources they need for success. MHA provides numerous services to hospitals and every hospital is a member.
Peters is known for her “infectious positive attitude” in her work and her life in general. She has been heavily involved in the community for many years, as a member of the Eaton Rapids Rotary Club, Women Working Wonders, Eaton Rapids Health Alliance and more, in addition to her work at the hospital. Her devotion to the community and her unrelenting efforts to improve it earned her the Caring About Women Locally Award in 2014. This award honors a woman who goes above and beyond for other women in the community and was given by a Lansing-based magazine.
In 2017 she received the Dr. Meinke and Dr. Sherman Distinguished Service Award by ERMC for providing exceptional service to patients and the community.
Many have commented that Peters isn’t one who merely pays her dues and just sits back. She becomes actively involved in numerous groups, programs, and causes in the community and was encouraged by the hospital to do so.
Peters started at the Eaton Rapids Medical Center fresh out of college in 2010; it was her first “real” job. Peters attended Ferris State, studying Business Administration. She volunteered as a marketing intern at the hospital while in high school and college, developing a social media platform for the ERMC. When the Marketing Director position opened in 2010, she was hired.
“Tim Johnson, CEO of Eaton Rapids Medical Center, took a huge chance, hiring me when I was only 21 years old,” Peters said. Johnson was instrumental in her success at ERMC, she feels.
“Tim is phenomenal. He cares about everyone,” she said.
“You have trusted me with the opportunity to explore programs and services to meet the needs of the community,” she wrote to Johnson. “You have given me the opportunity to make lasting impressions on my hometown.”
“I know how good I’ve had it,” Peters explained. “What a great job, to be able to brag about people and this hospital.”
Peters also credits her grandfather, the late Doug Stevenson, with being a huge influence in her life. “He was my mentor,” she explained, “and I miss not being able to consult with him on this major life change I’m experiencing.” Stevenson was DDA Director for Eaton Rapids, served on the Hospital Foundation, and delivered Meals on Wheels.
Peters and her husband, Calach, will not be moving to Okemos where her new job is located. She still plans on helping at the hospital and in the community when she can.
“We are so lucky to have a hospital here,” Peters said. “It’s a great place to work, and it’s wonderful to see how the hospital has grown. I was never bored, as there was always a new challenge to tackle.”
Peters is proud that ERMC remains an independent, not-for-profit hospital, not connected with any of the larger Lansing hospitals. It’s a local hospital and provides emergency, surgical, inpatient, outpatient, and primary care for patients of all ages.
In addition to marketing and fundraising as part of her job, Peters has also learned about medicine and health care. “When I started, at 21, I didn’t even know what a colonoscopy was,” she laughed. “Now I’ve learned the basics of many medical procedures so as to be able to market them.”
Her position has not been filled yet.
“We’ve had several strong candidates for the position,” Peters said. “I think having gone through COVID-19 there may be some really talented people out there who might be ready to come back home to Eaton Rapids and will do a great job for the ERMC.”