CARLSBAD — Hospice of the North Coast (HNC) will hold a grand opening from 4 to 6 p.m. July 12 of its new, six-bedroom, in-patient Pacifica House residence at 4411 Park Drive, 2013. The event is free and open to the public. For reservations, call (760) 431-4100.The opening will feature introductions of agencies and people who helped take Pacifica House from dream to reality, brief presentations, a ribbon-cutting, refreshments, entertainment and tours of the facility, which will welcome its initial patients in late Fall 2013. Also debuting at the grand opening is HNC’s Stories from the Heart Journal, an interactive publication that opens a window into the people who serve and are served by HNC, while offering users an opportunity to contemplate and chronicle their own life’s journey; all in a handy resource guide format.
Many area organizations and businesses, such as the Oceanside Museum of Art, which is providing artwork for the event, are donating time and resources to make Pacifica’s Grand Opening truly grand. On June 22, Carlsbad Hi-Noon Rotary is painting interiors and contributing amenities such as bird feeders outside patient rooms. North Coast Church is constructing a pergola, bench seating and other outdoor features. Community Service Pastor Connor McFadden said that he and his crew look forward to “our day of service at Pacifica on June 29. We plan to transform the back yard into a peaceful, inviting place to be.”
HNC Executive Director Nerice Kaufman said, “This residence will be the first freestanding in-patient facility in the area.”
Earlier this year, HNC seized an opportunity created by the state legislature’s adoption of Senate Bill 135, which, effective January 2013, made licensing of a freestanding hospice house far less cumbersome. Also in January, HNC was awarded a $1,065,000 Community Development Block Grant from the city of Carlsbad toward the $1,250,000 purchase of the nearly 4,500-square-foot property. Kaufman said that several naming and giving opportunities are available. “The funds will enable us to offer patients continuity of palliative care in a tranquil environment with around-the-clock care. We have arrived full circle from our inception in 1980 when Father Paul Camm of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Encinitas organized congregation members to help care for a terminally ill congregant in her home.
Nonprofit Hospice of the North Coast was established in 1980 to fill the need for comprehensive, compassionate hospice care in North County San Diego. HNC hosts fundraising events, operates a family support camp and resale shop, and maintains a cadre of volunteers.
