Hospice House of Williamsburg is pausing admissions while the facility enters the final phase of renovations.
Hospice House has provided end-of-life care and support for upwards of 150 guests annually since its facility opened in 2002. More than 3,000 people have stepped through its Powhatan Parkway doors in that time.
And it did it all free of charge, according to Executive Director Brandon Randall.
“It is a community gift and it is a special gift,” he said. “There’s not many organizations like ours throughout the country.”
To meet that mission, the nonprofit relies on community donations to the tune of $1 million per year. Donations are also what made Hospice House’s renovations possible, upgrades Randall called necessary after 20 years at its current location.
“It was definitely state-of-the-art when we opened up in 2002,” Randall said. “But a lot of things changed in 20 years and I think we’ve also learned a lot.”
This phase will be the third and final wave of renovations planned at Hospice House. Earlier work transformed the facility’s common spaces and administrative offices. This round will upgrade heating and cooling infrastructure as well as “re-imagine” the house’s front lobby and the four on-site guest suites.
Hospice House leaders considered the possibility of starting the work on just two suites to maintain services during the renovations. Randall said the organization couldn’t risk an unpleasant experience for any guests, opting to pause admissions for the duration of the work.
“While this disruption in service does sadden us because we always want to be open and ready for those who need us, we are encouraged because we know that we’ll re-open better and be positioned for many more years of service,” said Hospice House Board President Elizabeth White.
The final phase of renovations starts in July and is expected to be complete in 12 weeks. During that time, staff will continue offering bereavement support services.
The last round of renovations will cost about $650,000, most of which was raised by the family of Williamsburg-area developer Sterling Nichols. A long-time supporter of the Hospice House, Nichols helped with its founding and served on its executive committee for years.
Randall said Nichols died in 2019, which was a catalyst for his family to honor his memory by helping to finish the renovations.
“We know we’re doing important work,” Randall said. “But when you really see people financially decide that we want to stand behind you – it is really encouraging, it is energizing to myself and all our staff.”
The Hospice House plans to open its doors to the public before it starts admitting guests again. Randall said events like open houses are not typically appropriate while guests are in the house, and that the admissions pause provides an opportunity to increase community visibility.
Hospice care tends to go underutilized in Virginia, with fewer than half of eligible Medicare recipients using hospice coverage. That’s part of what makes raising awareness about its services in Williamsburg so important for Randall.
“We have a unique opportunity now,” he said. “We want to do everything that we can to not only promote the use of hospice, which really can be super beneficial to people going through end-of-life, but to remove stigmas and to remove stereotypes.”
