Josh gets up close: How Essentia Health made a dream come true for one Duluthian

Every day for the last two-plus years, Josh Haug and his mom have made the trip to Duluth’s Medical District for a look at the progress on Essentia Health’s Vision Northland Project, a $1 billion project downtown.

"Josh loves it, he loves to look at it and watch the windows go in and see the building take shape,” said JoAnne Steinke. “A lot of times, during the pandemic, we would be down here twice a day just so he could see it.”

Twice a day, counting the windows and admiring the progress on the multi-year investment in Duluth.

“It really was an escape for us during the pandemic,” said Steinke “After his work temporarily shut down, we really had nothing to do because Josh has a compromised immune system and we didn’t want to risk him getting sick. So this really saved us from feeling isolated from the world.”

On Wednesday, Nov. 2, Josh got to peek behind the curtain. Essentia provided him a private tour of the building so he could get an up-close look at all the progress inside, instead of admiring it from the outside.

“It was great, really great. He loved seeing the cafeteria and the operating rooms,” said Steinke.

Essentia partnered with Duluth-based Udac, where Josh is a client, to make it happen. Udac’s mission is to support individuals with disabilities and is dedicated to creating opportunities for individuals of all abilities to live, work, belong and enjoy life in an inclusive manner in the community.

"Josh’s love for this building and his excitement at watching the transformation of our community for the past two years is very exciting for him and for Duluth,” said Karen Herman, Udac’s executive director. “The team at Udac is grateful to Essentia for the opportunity for Josh to learn more about the building and to see Vision Northland up close. For more than 35 years, Essentia has been an important partner in providing opportunities for employment for people with disabilities and in working with Udac to create a more inclusive community.”

Josh, who will be 40 in December, was born 23 weeks premature. At just 1 pound, 11 ounces, he had to spend about six months in the neonatal intensive care unit at St. Mary’s Medical Center. A feisty little guy, Josh had a habit of pulling out his intubation tube, which caused his airways to scar, making breathing difficult. Josh has reduced cognitive abilities due to a brain bleed caused by his premature birth. He has also spent most of his life supported by a tracheotomy, making it difficult for him to speak.

None of that stopped the joy and elation from overtaking Josh as wide eyes, fist pumps and excited bursts of “yes” were abundant throughout his nearly hour-long tour up and down the stairs and in and out of operating rooms, birthing suites and more in the replacement St. Mary’s.

"This was all a big surprise for him. He didn’t know until the morning of that we were doing this and he was overjoyed to go inside and see everything that’s happening,” said Steinke.

Josh received VIP treatment during the tour. He was guided through the halls by Essentia’s CEO, Dr. David Herman, and Phil Johnson, the project manager for McGough. Both talked Josh through what he was seeing and answered all of his questions. At the end, he was gifted his own Essentia-branded hard hat to commemorate his tour.

“At Essentia, we are building this for our community and our colleagues to continue to deliver the care that our patients, their families and the community needs,” said Dr. Herman. “It is great to share our pride and see the enthusiasm with Josh and the community as this facility approaches completion. Spending time with Josh and his mother fed my excitement for this important endeavor. We are grateful for Josh’s support and the support we have received from the community through this journey.”

When Josh isn’t working with Loll doing packaging and Roufs Property Maintenance, he’s counting down the hours until mom can take him back to admire the project.