AUBURN #- Kickball: a favorite pastime on playgrounds and during recess since childhood; a game that elicits smiles, laughs and healthy competition.

Well, it isn't just for childhood anymore.

Since December, members of Auburn Memorial Hospital's staff have been gathering regularly to help lift the spirits of the employees.

“We've been through quite a few changes lately,” said Sue Corey, employee events coordinator and nurse manager for the hospital. “So we decided that it was time to do something to help build up morale and give everyone a chance to get together and have some fun.”

At one time, employee outings and picnics were a regular part of life for the hospital's employees. But times change.

“We haven't done these things in ages,” Corey said. “When you are losing money those are the first kinds of things to go. But we have gotten through that and now we are starting to get more of these events going.”

With things looking up for the hospital, an employee events committee was formed, comprised of six hospital employees who get together to plan events to get employees out in a social atmosphere away from work.

And by all accounts it's been a successful endeavor.

“I think all of these things we've been doing have helped to build up morale among everyone at the hospital,” Corey said. “We have had a really good response from everyone about what we've been doing.”

And many employees have been eager to say the least, to keep the momentum going.

Sunday's kickball game was an impromptu event that Corey and other members of the committee quickly threw together at the request of hospital employees.

“People were asking when we were going to do something again,” Corey said. “Our next planned event was going to be an employee picnic and there was some time between that and our last event, so everyone was asking when we were going to do something again. So we decided to put a kickball game together.”

The idea enthusiastically drew together 47 employees and family members at Clifford Park, making four teams, playing a long afternoon of the classic game.

“The response to this idea has really been overwhelming,” Corey said. “We weren't really sure what to expect, but the response from everyone has been really great. Kickball is a lot of fun and we figured it is something everyone can do and I think that got a lot of people interested in coming out to play.”

As soon as the idea was announced many jumped at the chance to play.

“I just thought it would be a lot of fun,” said Phyllis Conte, an X-ray technician at the hospital. “I thought it would be a good way to get out and get some exercise and have some fun and meet some new people, make some new friends.”

The game also drew the support and participation of a lot of family members.

Joey Tozzi, 10, whose mother Christy Van Ostrand is the third floor weight loss coordinator at the hospital, was among the family members who got in on the fun.

“I thought it would be really fun,” Tozzi said. “It is a good way to get to know more people and make some new friends and have a lot of fun. It has been really awesome, a really fun day.”

This kind of unity extends to both employees and their families, and that's what Corey and the rest of the planning committee hope to continue to build upon.

“It is nice to get families involved,” Corey said. “We've got people from the whole hospital, all departments who are out to play and are supporting what we are doing. We've got a lot of people that have volunteered to help with the planning committee and the support we are getting from everyone is great to see.”

For employees such as Jessica Herron, a dietitian who only recently began working at the hospital, this outing was enjoyable on several levels.

“It is nice that a community hospital like this can do these kinds of things,” she said. “I used to work at a bigger place and we didn't do things like this so it is awesome that everyone can get together and get to know each other. I just started and this is the first event I've been out for and it is a nice way to get to know everyone.”

Corey said there are plans for more games over the course of the summer.

“We are trying to plan a doctor employee softball game,” Corey said. “And we are going to do something at the Owasco Field Days in August. Things are getting better at the hospital, and I think these things we've been doing have really helped get everyone's morale up and make it more fun.”