Why we fundraise

Most of us - including our friends and the members of our family - will ultimately face a life-limiting illness or loss. In fact, as the population ages and the structure of our health care system evolves, there are few options for the terminally ill who need physical, emotional and spiritual support. The Dorothy Ley Hospice fills that critical void.

Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we are able to provide services free of charge to those in need.  This is why every dollar we receive from individuals, foundations, corporations, organizations, churches and special events is appreciated and valued.

The Hospice raises funds for two reasons: 

• Funding for our community programs and services, residential care and administrative costs is provided through our Annual Campaign.  Overall funding for the Hospice comes from two sources: 53 per cent from the community and 47 per cent from government.  Since the cost of providing our services is $2 million a year, we need to raise more than $1 million from the community annually.
• Phase 2 of our Capital Campaign will help us complete The Dorothy Ley Hospice Palliative Care Centre.  The Centre will provide a permanent home for ourcommunity based programs and services and enable us to expand and enhance the care we provide. When the Centre is opened in early 2009, we will offer a Residential Care program providing 24-hour care to more than 150 people each year.

Why Your Support is Vital
With more and more people embracing the benefits of end-of-life care, we are under increasing pressure to expand our programs.  As the demand for our programs grows, so does the need to expand our fundraising initiatives. For example:

Our Day Program
costs $100,000 per year to operate two days a week. The program offers 20 or more clients the opportunity to participate in a variety of activities, enjoy companionship and share experiences with others living with a life-limiting illness. Family caregivers often use this time to rest and relax or to run errands, knowing that their loved ones are being cared for by professionals and trained volunteers.

Our In-Home Care Program
which provides case management by registered palliative care nurses and support in the home by trained volunteers, has an average cost of about $1,700 per client.

Our Spiritual Care and Bereavement Care Program
offering multi-faith spiritual support and bereavement counseling, costs approximately $120,000 a year. In addition, we offer specialized bereavement training for volunteers which costs $1,500.

Our Professional and Community Education Program
raises awareness and provides hospice palliative care education to volunteers and staff, community professionals and the general public. For example, training health care professionals in pain and symptom management costs $7,000 per year.

Our Volunteer Program
screens, trains and supports volunteers who provide in-home, administration and fundraising support. All volunteers are required to complete a 30-hour orientation and training program, which costs more than $10,000 every year to administer. In addition, we offer a special program that trains volunteers to work with children who are dying and children whose parents or brothers or sisters are dying, which costs about $8,000 per year.