Hope Hospice facility in Lehigh nearing completion
If you haven’t driven out on Beth Stacey Boulevard in Lehigh Acres recently, you may be surprised to see that the new Hope Hospice House is nearing completion.
A few weeks ago, Samira Beckwith, the CEO of Hope Hospice in Lee County, told Lehigh Acres chamber members that the new facility may open as soon as March. That’s three months away.
A photo taken from the air shows that the complex is well on its way to completion.
Beckwith is working with two women in Lehigh who agreed a year ago to help in a capital campaign to raise money for the new complex.
“We needed for Hope Hospice to come to Lehigh,” Beckwith said. “We have had patients from Lehigh and areas away from Lehigh at the Cape Coral Home. And a lot of people have asked us to come to Lehigh, so this was our latest project.”
A $5 million capital program was begun and Hope Hospice has raised more than $2 million and is hoping the community will continue to pledge to help pay for the facility.
Beckwith said the Lehigh facility will be among the most modern of any of the Hope Homes in Lee County.
It is situated on several acres of land given to Hope Hospice by the Community Health Association, a group that sold the old Lehigh hospital and invested proceeds in an account that has raised money to help out in other medical causes.
Hope Hospice is not only for cancer patients who are coming to an end of their life, explained Beckwith.
“We are for those who are facing the end of their lives from any disease,” she said.
“Our people are compassionate and we do everything possible to make their last days as pleasant as possible,” she said.
The building of the Lehigh Hope Hospice House has brought money to many in Lehigh who worked in construction, but lost their jobs two years ago when the economy went sour in Southwest Florida.
“We’re looking for volunteers to help us staff the Hope House,” Beckwith said. To get in touch with her to offer to be a volunteer, call her at 239-489-9177.
“With training, volunteers will be ready to staff the complex when we open in March. That is the date the contractors are telling us. Only inclement weather can slow that date,” she said.
“We’re excited to be in Lehigh. This community is important to us and its people deserve a Hope Home like others in the county.”
At the Chamber affair, Beckwith brought literature with her that noted contributes could donate $115 for one square foot of the building or they could finance an entire room. Those who contribute will be honored in a special display in the new Hope Hospice house.
No one is turned away from Hope Hospice,” Beckwith said.
“We work with insurance companies, including Medicare and Medicaid,’ she said.
Hope Hospice also sends volunteers and nurses into patients’ homes, those who wish to die at home.
“We do all we can to make it easier on not only the dying patient, but the family,” she said.
A new street has been paved off of Beth Stacey that will lead motorists to the complex. It is generally located behind the Community Health Organization complex that houses Lehigh Community Services.
After the complex is finished, there may be an open house for the community.