Beacon Dowagiac Gets New Leadership with Nursing Veteran Named President

*DOWAGIAC, Mich.* — Beacon Health System announced this week the appointment of Sarah Paturalski as president of Beacon Dowagiac, bringing to the 100-bed hospital a leader with more than 15 years of healthcare experience rooted in nursing.

Paturalski joins Beacon Dowagiac this summer after serving as interim president at Memorial Hospital of South Bend since 2018. Her selection followed a national search, with final selection made in partnership with the Beacon Dowagiac Board members.

"Sarah is a values-driven, collaborative leader who exemplifies what outstanding service looks like in our health system and our communities," said Kreg Gruber, Beacon's CEO. "Her roots in nursing have shaped her into the kind of leader who builds strong teams, earns deep trust and delivers results. We are proud to have her serve as president of Beacon Dowagiac, where her passion for people and patient care will make a lasting difference."

The hospital's leadership team also announced several additional appointments:

  • Lee Herschberger will serve as interim vice president of nursing and clinical services at Memorial Hospital, effective April 13
  • Mary Wendt will serve as interim vice president of operations at Three Rivers Health, also effective April 13

Paturalski brings extensive experience to the role. She has served as vice president of nursing and clinical services at Memorial Hospital of South Bend since 2018, where she most recently stepped into the role of interim president. During her tenure, she provided executive oversight of all inpatient clinical areas at the 423-bed downtown South Bend hospital.

Her accomplishments at Memorial include:

  • Serving as a key clinical architect for the $257.7 million Memorial patient tower expansion
  • Helping design the St. Joseph County Health Crisis Center
  • Leading initiatives that significantly reduced inpatient length of stay and nursing agency staffing
  • Spearheading growth of Beacon's nursing pipeline through the Beacon School of Nursing at Ivy Tech and Hybrid Faculty Program
  • Establishing a partnership with Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation to advance inpatient rehabilitation services

"Sarah is a dedicated mentor of emerging leaders," the hospital noted. "She has served twice as Memorial's interim vice president of operations, overseeing a broad range of clinical and operational service lines."

Paturalski holds a Master of Business Administration and a Master of Science in Nursing from Indiana Wesleyan University, along with an Associate of Applied Science in Nursing from Lake Michigan College. She began her career as a registered nurse and has held clinical leadership positions at Beacon, including director of patient care services at Three Rivers Health Hospital.

The hospital's leadership team noted that Paturalski will transition to Beacon Dowagiac this summer, where she will bring her expertise in operational excellence, workforce development and patient care innovation to the role.

Dave Bailey, who has been serving as interim president of Beacon Dowagiac since July 2025, will step down as Paturalski takes over the position.

Sources:

  • https://beaconhealthsystem.org/news/2026/04/09/beacon-announces-sarah-paturalski-as-president-of-beacon-dowagiac-names-additional-leaders
  • https://www.nilesstar.com/leaderpub/communities/dowagiac/paturalski-named-president-of-beacon-dowagiac/article_d3ebe5d0-f5a4-5d7a-a036-ac5ee6112bbd.html