U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., recently toured several community projects in Berkeley Springs and Martinsburg, receiving updates on workforce development and health care expansion in the Eastern Panhandle.

Capito began her visit in Berkeley Springs with a tour of Blue Ridge Community and Technical College’s new welding laboratory, which recently opened in the former War Memorial Hospital building. The laboratory is designed to help meet the region’s growing demand for skilled trades workers while giving new use to the former hospital facility.

“I was glad to join leaders from Blue Ridge Community and Technical College here in Berkeley Springs to tour the new welding laboratory and see firsthand how this facility is preparing West Virginians for good-paying careers in the skilled trades,” Capito said.

The senator said the welding lab demonstrates how workforce investments can also help repurpose existing community assets.

“As demand for skilled workers continues to grow across West Virginia, initiatives like this will help ensure our students have the hands-on training and opportunities they need to succeed right here at home,” she said.

Blue Ridge President Dr. Peter Checkovich said Capito’s support has been important to the college’s workforce-development efforts, including the welding lab, veterinary technician program, plastics manufacturing lab at the college’s technology center and the developing aviation maintenance technology program.

“For our students, the programs represent an opportunity to secure a good career in vibrant industries,” Checkovich said. “For our employers, the programs represent a well-trained workforce and a secure future.”

Capito then traveled to Martinsburg, where she toured WVU Medicine Berkeley Medical Center and received updates on hospital operations. She then toured construction progress on the medical center’s new hospital tower, which is expected to expand patient services, and received an update on the YMCA of Berkeley County project located beside the medical center.

“It was great to visit Berkeley Medical Center and see firsthand the incredible work being done to care for families across the Eastern Panhandle,” Capito said, adding that she believes the emergency room at Berkeley Medical Center is one of the busiest in the WVU Medicine system.

She said the hospital tower represents an important investment in the region’s future as the Eastern Panhandle continues to grow.

“Expanding patient services and making sure West Virginians can receive quality care close to home is something I will always be proud to support,” she said, adding that she will continue to work to secure whatever federal funding might be available for projects in the area.

Mark O’Hern, president and CEO of Berkeley Medical Center, said the hospital’s growth is focused on expanding access to care, investing in its workforce, recruiting providers and advancing projects designed to serve the region for years to come. He said Capito’s visit provided an opportunity to highlight the hospital’s growth and the impact of its work, including providing care closer to home and creating career opportunities for local residents.

“The future of healthcare in our communities is incredibly bright, and we are grateful for the opportunity to share that vision and progress with Senator Capito,” O’Hern said.