In two years, Maison McCulloch Hospice has raised $8 million to fund an expansion that more than doubles its square footage.
The Stand By Me campaign marked its second anniversary on Feb. 22 with an appreciation luncheon at the Steelworkers Hall on Brady Street.
Campaign chair Gerry Lougheed Jr. said over the years, the hospice has come to realize the people of Greater Sudbury have become very comfortable in raising money for the hospice. Perhaps, that's because since its inception, more than 1,500 people have spend their final days there.
“You can always count on Sudbury,” Lougheed said. “Sudburians have such generous hearts, and everyone, I think, is behind the hospice, because there likely isn't a more inclusive program in Sudbury.”
The expansion project is on budget and on time, Lougheed said. When it's done, it will see the hospice grow from its current 10,000 square feet to 26,000 square feet. The project is in the fifth month of Phase 3 of construction, which is expected to be complete at the end of December 2019.
The expansion will include three additional end-of-life beds, six short-stay palliative symptom management beds, one multi-use pediatric-transition-education suite, as well as additional space for existing and future programs and services.
“We need to raise another $600,000 in the next year,” Lougheed said. “We need $400,000 as part of the original capital campaign, and another $200,000 to furnish all the rooms.
“Everyone seems to be part of the hospice family, so we're quite confident we'll be able to surpass that $600,000 and actually leave a reserve for future needs.”
It doesnt' matter who you are — kings or paupers, blue collar or white collar — you can go to the hospice and be treated exceptionally well, Laugheed said. That's why so many people find it easy to open their wallets and support it financially.
