With special guest Trish Gergitch
Laura Sherwood (Interim Executive Director) and Dr. Bob Jones (Board Member and Campaign Chair), gave us a great presentation on the status of the new Hospice of Elgin which is a huge project underway to benefit the community. There is currently no access to hospice in Elgin County and often families have to travel long distances to be with their end-of-life family members. We learned that the new facility, "The Cottage", has been designed with 10 private suites which will care for 125 individuals over a year. In addition, with the palliative care clinic and other support programs, 400-500 family members will also be cared for.
The initial cost of this project was estimated at $9.5M (pre-covid) but recent estimates are at $17M. Fortunately, 75% of that has already been raised and the push is on for the last $4M. The two Rotary Clubs in St. Thomas each donated $50k toward this worthy endevour and will be identified as sponsors for the Hospice's Team Meeting Room.
The construction is expected to begin in early 2024 and be completed in early 2025. It will bring 30 new jobs and require 200 volunteers. Annual operating costs are 55% covered by the Ministry of Health but the remaining 45% ($1.2-1.4M) have to be fund-raised every year to keep the doors open.
Mark thanked the speakers, noting that a bear would be donated to a women's shelter in the area on their behalf.
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