(Enlarge) The county’s first residential hospice, Senator Bob Hooper House, at 2007 Klein Plaza Drive in Forest Hill, held one open house to celebrate its completion last week and will open its doors again to the community on Thursday, Jan. 6, from 2 to 7 p.m. (Photo courtesy of Senator Bob Hooper House)
Harford County residents looking for specialized hospice services have to look no farther than their own backyard.
The county’s first residential hospice, Senator Bob Hooper House, at 2007 Klein Plaza Drive in Forest Hill, held one open house to celebrate its completion last week and will open its doors again to the community on Thursday, Jan. 6, from 2 to 7 p.m.
Beverly Dean-Crabtree, hospice residence director, said in an e-mail last week that construction was completed early in December, but builders are still working on a few “punch-out” items.
“We were hoping to have completed the construction process by the middle of October, but we were very close despite the numerous weather-related events we had earlier in the year,” she said. “Everyone worked very hard to stay on task to get us to the finish line.”
The project had originally been scheduled to finish in late spring or early summer of 2010.
The 10,570-square-foot building cost about $2 million to build and was named after former Sen. J. Robert Hooper, a Harford County businessman and resident, after his family donated $750,000 toward the project.
It will consist of eight private rooms that include overnight facilities for visitors, a community kitchen, dining room, living room and non-denominational chapel.
Dean-Crabtree said the average length of stay for the hospice residence would be a month or less.
To receive hospice care, an individual must have been diagnosed as having six months or less to live.
“Based on regulatory requirements, we could not exceed an eight-bed facility and keep the home-like environment,” she wrote.
Stella Maris, a Baltimore-area service focused on long-term and hospice care, will provide specialized medical care and support services.
Patients can start moving in during early January.
“The Senator Bob Hooper House is the essence of the term ‘community,’” Dean-Crabtree said. “Truly this has been a group effort and, for those who may not have had the means to financially support this great cause, they gave of their time and talents to keep our costs down.”
More than $3 million in individual donations and in-kind services were given by businesses like Jarrettsville Builders, ADW Architects, Comer Construction and Klein’s ShopRite.