Anaheim : Charity Seeks Funds for Opening Hospice

Community leaders are trying to raise $200,000 to open Orange County’s first nonprofit hospice in an Anaheim Hills neighborhood.

Operating as Hospice of Orange County, the group plans to purchase from Catholic Charities of Orange County a home on Paseo Rio Azul by January and convert it into a six-bed facility. Catholic Charities had housed mentally disabled children at the residence but recently consolidated it with a similar home elsewhere.

Hospices house terminally ill patients in a homelike setting during their dying days. This hospice would be staffed around the clock by a registered nurse, said Gemma Heffernan, a social worker and a leader of the group.

She said prominent supporters include Anaheim Mayor Tom Daly and County Supervisor Thomas F. Riley.

“This will be an opportunity for those with inadequate or no insurance coverage to receive hospice care,” Heffernan said. “It will also help the terminally ill who have no one to care for them.”

Heffernan said opening the hospice will be costly. Some renovations need to be made to the house, she said, and other expenses will be incurred.

An open house was held last week, and an art auction will be held in the near future, Heffernan said. Other fund-raisers are planned.

Donations should be sent to Hospice of Orange County Inc. in care of United Way of Orange County, 18012 Mitchell South, Irvine, Calif. 92714.