MISSOULA — After an eight-year journey marked by community support, the Hope Hospice Center held a dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony Tuesday ahead of its July opening.
The state-of-the-art facility is only the second of its kind in Montana.
The new center will provide compassionate care and support for patients and families during one of life's most challenging times.
The dream of the Hope Hospice Center began in 2017 as community leaders and healthcare professionals recognized the need for specialized end-of-life care in the region.
Missoula Mayor Andrea Davis attended Tuesday's event and expressed her gratitude that the opening is near.
"This is an amazing day. This is a special day. This is a day that has been long anticipated.”
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Partners Hope Foundation created the new center, a place board member Claire Sherwood emphasized was built with Missoula in mind.
“We knew this community was uniquely equipped to build something that may have never been built before," she said.
When it opens this summer, the Hope Hospice Center will be the only dedicated, inpatient hospice facility in Western Montana that offers a retreat-style environment.
The state's other inpatient hospice center is located in Great Falls.
Partners Hope Foundation president Dr. Betsy Bach reflected on the early days of the project with a mix of humor and disbelief.
“I was laughing because I was looking at some notes I took from our very first meeting," she said. "I wrote in the column ‘Are we nuts?’ and apparently, we weren’t because we managed to pull this all together.”
The $15.4 million project was supported 100% by philanthropic giving.
The center features a thoughtfully designed 12-bed space that offers a warm, residential feel rather than a typical clinical or hospital atmosphere.
Watch previous coverage: Ground broken for new Partners Hope Foundation hospice center in Missoula
“We wanted the whole center to feel much more like a residential feel versus a clinical or hospital type feel," Amanda Yeoman Melro, Executive Director of the Partners Hope Foundation, explained. "And we also wanted it to be thoughtfully designed so that the spaces are oversized and airy with lots of natural light."
The Hope Hospice Center will provide three levels of care upon opening: general inpatient care, residential hospice care, and respite care for families. Within the first five years, the center expects to serve around 3,000 patients.
Chaplain Dan Dixson reminded attendees of the true purpose of the facility.
"Some people may believe that this is someplace where people are going to come to die," he said. "But more than that, it’s a place where people will come to experience hope and peace at the end of their life.”
Corin Schneider, CEO of Partners in Home Care, delivered a heartfelt message to future patients.
“To the patients who will walk through these doors, you are safe. You are in caring hands. And your story matters. To their families, you are not alone. And to our community, thank you.”
You can visit Hope Hospice Center's website to learn more.
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