Lindsay Weber Named President, CEO of Avera St. Benedict Health Center
Avera is pleased to announce that Lindsay Weber will be the next president and CEO of Avera St. Benedict Health Center.
Rita Blasius, the current president and CEO, will retire on Aug. 31, and a plan will be implemented to ensure a smooth transition.
“Through the interview process, it became clear that Lindsay has established herself as a respected medical staff leader at Avera St. Benedict who has had a positive impact on the facility,” said Doug Ekeren, Regional President and CEO of Avera Queen of Peace Hospital who oversees Avera St. Benedict Health Center. “She has been working closely with Rita Blasius to continue to build her leadership skills and is attaining a Doctorate of Nursing Practice, Systems and Organizational Leadership from the University of South Dakota. Lindsay is dedicated to ensuring that Avera St. Benedict remains a well-respected critical access hospital and skilled nursing facility that provides high-quality patient and resident care.”
Pat Leischner, chair of the Avera St. Benedict Board of Directors, said she is excited to have Weber lead the health care ministry.
"We had an excellent group of candidates for the position, but Lindsay stood out to us as the one who would be the best fit for the organization,” she stated. “She possesses exceptional leadership skills and a great understanding of our facility and our mission."
Weber said she has a passion to lead Avera St. Benedict through whatever challenges are in the future.
“We have a unique culture at our facility that makes Avera St. Benedict feel like a home away from home for many of our employees. That’s what made me fall in love with this organization, and I think it is important to maintain as we strive to attract employees in a low-unemployment environment,” Weber said. “There are many new and exciting things happening in health care, and I look forward to working with the larger Avera Health system to bring those innovations to Parkston. As the world changes, we must continue to change to meet the needs of our patients and residents. I’m extremely humbled by this opportunity and am excited to be a part of a bright future for Avera St. Benedict.”
Weber joined Avera St. Benedict as a registered nurse in 2009 and in August 2010 became a certified nurse practitioner with our team. She also served on the Parkston School Board from 2021-22.
Her accomplishments at Avera St. Benedict range from developing the first rural health hospitalist model and successfully instituting a team approach to inpatient physician rounds to initiating a COVID-19 surge plan and preparing medical staff for a challenging electronic medical record upgrade.
Weber has a husband, Rick, and three children: Kate, 9; Luke, 7; and Emma, 3.
Blasius has worked at Avera St. Benedict for most of the last 37 years, filling dietary and medical records positions before becoming the chief financial officer of Avera St. Benedict in 1992. In 2017, she was promoted to the president/CEO position after the retirement of Gale Walker.
“Lindsay has a positive attitude, is great a building relationships and is a problem solver,” Blasius said. “She has a dynamic personality and is firmly rooted in the Parkston community.”
She said it will be difficult to leave her Avera St. Benedict family, but that it has provided her with a lifetime of support and memories.
“Throughout my career, I have always felt that my job has been to ‘take care of the people who take care of the people,’” Blasius said of her administrative roles. “The amazing work the Avera St. Benedict team does each day to serve patients and residents continues to inspire me. And I’ve been so proud to be part of this organization that continues to breathe life into the health care ministry founded by the Benedictine and Presentation Sisters.”
