Hospice in the News
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: April 23, 2007
Contact:
Rosemary J. Collins, Manager of Public Relations
Day, (716) 686-8259; Cell: (716) 570-2090; rcollins@palliativecare.org
Tracy Cardwell, Public Relations, St. John Baptist Church
Day, (716) 855-1200 x268; Cell: (716) 715-1001; tcardwell_1@netzero.com
M E D I A A D V I S O R Y
NYS APPROVES CONSTRUCTION OF NATION'S FIRST
HOSPICE HOUSE COLLABORATION
ST. JOHN BAPTIST/HOSPICE BUFFALO HOUSE TO HOLD DEDICATION
WHO: St. John Baptist Church, Goodell & Michigan Ave.
and Hospice Buffalo
WHAT: New York State Approves Construction to Begin
St. John Baptist/Hospice Buffalo House;
Site Dedication Ceremony to be Held with Rev. Otis Moss,
former staff member of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King
WHEN: Sunday, April 29, 2007
12:30 pm
WHERE: 111 Maple Street, Buffalo, across from Family Life Center
Rain Location:
Reverend Dr. Bennett W. Smith, Sr. Family Life Center
833 Michigan Avenue (across from St. John Baptist Church)
DETAILS:
Renown theologian, pastor, and civic leader the Reverend Dr. Otis Moss, Jr. will lead the site dedication ceremony of the new St. John Baptist/Hospice Buffalo House, the nation's first residence for the terminally ill developed jointly by a hospice program and a church. Last week, New York State's Dept. of Health granted the project its certificate of need, clearing the way for construction to begin. Government and local officials will join Dr. Moss, Rev. Michael Chapman, senior pastor of St. John Baptist Church, and William E. Finn, president and CEO of Hospice Buffalo, Inc. for the ceremony.
Rev. Dr. Moss is one of America's most influential religious leaders and is in Buffalo to recognize the 80th anniversary of St. John Baptist Church. He was a co-pastor with Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Sr., at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta in 1971 and currently serves as pastor of Olivet Institutional Baptist Church in Cleveland, Ohio.
"This collaboration has become a national model for hospice access and outreach in minority communities. When it opens in 2008, the St. John Baptist/Hospice Buffalo House will be the only Hospice Residence created through a hospice/church partnership; designed for and located in the minority community. The St. John Baptist/Hospice Buffalo House will be an 8-bed residence of comfort and care for Hospice patients in their final months or weeks of illness," stated William E. Finn. "The residence will raise awareness and ensure that those who could benefit from end-of-life care are offered a choice to receive hospice services."
Funding for the $ 2.7 million project was raised through grants from the Western New York State delegation of Assembly and Senate/Empire State Development Corporation, M & T Bank, the Margaret L. Wendt Foundation, John R. Oishei Foundation, Erie County, the City of Buffalo, the Community Health Foundation of Western & Central New York, United States Department of Health and Human Services sponsored by Congresswoman Louise Slaughter, and the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo.
The St. John Baptist/Hospice Buffalo House will serve the entire community.
The Home will offer a serene home-like environment to hospice patients who may not have a caregiver or a home to receive care.
Media are invited to attend.
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