FARMINGTON – Richard Batt, president of Franklin Memorial Hospital and Franklin Community Health Network, said Wednesday he would retire in January after 15 years at the helm.

Rebecca Ryder of Mission, Texas, will succeed Batt as president and chief executive officer of the hospital and the health network.

Batt said the decision to retire was his own.

“It’s been an honor to have led this organization. I’ve enjoyed every day right up to today and I’ll enjoy every day equally until the new CEO arrives on Jan. 5,” he said.

Franklin Community Health Network, the parent company of FMH, announced the appointment of Ryder, who has worked as the interim chief executive officer of McAllen Medical Hospitals in McAllen, Texas, since 2006.

Her appointment will be effective Jan. 5, 2009, according to Doug Walrath, chairman of the health network’s board of trustees.

“I am pleased to report that the recruitment process was very inclusive and thorough. We reviewed an outstanding group of candidates from a national search and our decision was unanimous to offer the position to Becky Ryder,” Walrath said in a prepared statement.

Ryder is a Maine native, born and raised in Portland. She received her master’s degree in community health nursing from Boston University and a bachelor’s degree in nursing from the University of Southern Maine. She is a certified fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.

Ryder began her career as a nurse and worked at Portland’s Mercy Hospital as administrator for nursing before moving to the Intermountain Healthcare System in Utah. She also served previously as the chief operating officer for the Providence Medical Center in Washington state.

Batt is retiring from the hospital, but he will not retire from work, he said. He plans to work as a consultant in Maine, New England and the country, bringing concepts that have been successful at FMH to other organizations, he said.

Under his tenure the hospital has received numerous accolades for being one of the most successful rural health care systems in a county that has one of the healthiest populations in Maine, he said.