The Hamon Charitable Foundation has pledged an additional $2 million to Presbyterian Communities and Services Foundation to fund construction of Faith Presbyterian Hospice’s T. Boone Pickens Hospice and Palliative Care Center. This brings the total commitment from the Hamon Charitable Foundation to $3.5 million. Funding for the much needed Pickens Center started with an initial $18.4 million donation by T. Boone Pickens Foundation followed by a $10 million gift from the Harold Simmons Foundation and will eventually serve roughly 1,800 patients a year. It will be the first stand-alone inpatient hospice complex in Dallas, as the city is currently the largest in the country without this type of service. The fundraising campaign is in its final push to raise the remaining nearly $2.7 million of the $38.6 million necessary for phase one construction by October 8, in order to receive a $500,000 challenge grant from the J.E. and L.E. Mabee Foundation, of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Godwin Dixon, President and CEO of Presbyterian Communities and Services, recently met with major donors T. Boone Pickens, Chairman of BP Capital LLC; Lisa K. Simmons, President of the Harold Simmons Foundation; Serena Connelly, Director of Philanthropy for the Harold Simmons Foundation; and Kelly Roach, President of the Hamon Charitable Foundation to thank them for their support.
“We truly appreciate the support of all our donors, and we are thankful for the Hamon Charitable Foundation’s continued generosity,” said Godwin Dixon. “I know the Pickens Center will help us ensure that those facing end-of-life illnesses will have the necessary support at their time of greatest need. Dallas has long needed this level of support, and we are so very grateful for donors who understand the vision and need.”
The Pickens Center will include five centers of excellence: inpatient care, spiritual care, education and resource, outdoor reflection and child and family bereavement. Funds are currently being sought for the first phase of construction which includes the Harold Simmons Foundation Inpatient Care Center, the Hamon Resource and Education Center, the Donald and Charlotte Test Outdoor Reflection Center and the as of yet unnamed, Spiritual Care Center.
The Hamon Resource and Education Center will provide the area’s most comprehensive palliative care and grief support resource library. It will be developed based on consultations with industry leaders, The Hospice of the Florida Suncoast in Clearwater, Florida, and The Dougy Center in Portland, Oregon. The Hamon Resource and Education Center will serve physician interns, therapists, social workers, child life specialists, music therapists, chaplains and other professional caregivers attending North Texas academic institutions, and will continue Presbyterian Communities and Services’ long history of educational support. The center will also be a destination for students to gain knowledge about pain and symptom management, as well as a place for families to learn about caring for a loved one.
“We are honored to have the Hamon legacy significantly associated with this needed addition to the healthcare continuum of Dallas. The Hamon Charitable Foundation, Mr. Pickens, the Harold Simmons Foundation, and Mr. and Mrs. Test are leading the way for creation of a facility that will enable Faith Presbyterian Hospice to offer inpatient care to those in the Dallas area who need that option,” said Milton Key, executive director for Presbyterian Communities and Services Foundation. “For those facing end-of-life who have uncontrolled symptoms, 24/7 pain management needs, young children in the home, or who live alone, and for those caregivers who need a brief respite, the Pickens Center will be an invaluable resource. For family caregivers, clergy, physicians, social workers and nurses in training, the Pickens Center will be the place to come and learn how to best support those in their care who are facing death and experiencing grief.”
Presbyterian Communities and Services Foundation encourages the Dallas community to contribute to this cause. After phase one, the fundraising effort will focus on phase two and three which will include the child and family bereavement center and endowment.
If you would like to donate to help the Presbyterian Communities and Services Foundation qualify for its challenge grant and complete the phase one construction goal by October 8, 2014, please call Milton Key at 214-413-1577.
Image courtesy of Dennis Bowman
Image 1: (Left to Right) Godwin Dixon, President and CEO of Presbyterian Communities and Services; Serena Connelly, Director of Philanthropy for the Harold Simmons Foundation; T. Boone Pickens, Chairman of BP Capital LLC; Lisa K. Simmons, President of the Harold Simmons Foundation; and Kelly Roach, President of Hamon Charitable Foundation.
ABOUT PRESBYTERIAN COMMUNITIES AND SERVICES
Presbyterian Communities and Services, located in Dallas, is a faith-based nonprofit organization comprised of U.S. News & World Report recognized continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs)—Grace Presbyterian Village and Presbyterian Village North—and the leading hospice services of Faith Presbyterian Hospice. The organization fulfills its mission of empowering individuals to live their lives to the fullest by providing a standard for excellence, premier training, quality services and compassionate care. With a 79-year shared legacy, Presbyterian Communities and Services was established in 2008 to join the two CCRCs and hospice organization. For additional information, please visit www.prescs.org.
ABOUT FAITH PRESBYTERIAN HOSPICE
Faith Presbyterian Hospice, a Presbyterian Communities and Services community, is the largest nonprofit hospice in Dallas and provides faith-based programs and services to support the wishes of patients and ensure a meaningful end-of-life journey. By integrating therapies, Faith Presbyterian Hospice provides care that improves patients’ quality of life while easing pain and addressing symptoms, allowing them to live the remainder of their lives as fully and comfortably as possible. In 2013, Faith Presbyterian Hospice began providing hospice services at Baylor Medical Center and broke ground on the T. Boone Pickens Hospice & Palliative Care Center with a projected opening in 2015. Faith Presbyterian Hospice is nationally recognized for its innovative programs including Faithful Wish, a program that grants personal requests to make dreams come true; Faithful Presence, providing patients and their families with recorded messages from their loved ones; and Faithful Paws, a program bringing comfort to patients through the companionship of certified animals. For more information on Faith Presbyterian Hospice, please visit www.prescs.org.
