Sunrise named funds help Hospice’s new building project

Barry Atkinson, Hospice Tairāwhiti Chair, says they are building a new facility as their current premises are no longer large enough or fit for purpose.

“We don’t have enough room to accommodate our increasing staff numbers and for patients and families to visit, and more importantly, our lack of space is restricting the potential to grow the services we can offer to the community.”

“We know from Ministry of Health predictions that the number of people requiring hospice services will greatly increase in coming years.”

The new building is estimated to cost $3.1m, so far they have fundraised $2.1m.

Barbara Grout, Hospice Tairāwhiti General Manager, says they are grateful for the grants they received from Gavin McFarlane and Rosemary Johnson’s named endowment funds at Sunrise which have gone into the building fund pot.

As with all hospice palliative care services throughout New Zealand, the majority of Hospice Tairāwhiti’s funding comes by way of grants and donations.

Their focus at the moment is fundraising enough to start the building project, but they also know that once they are in the new building annual fixed costs will increase by $50,000
per annum.

Barbara added that “operating a service that isn’t fully funded is a challenge”.

“In the future, knowing we have annual grants from Sunrise, we can go into our budget each year with some confidence of a regular income.”

Jane Williams, Hospice Tairāwhiti Deputy Chair, says Hospice Tairāwhiti’s focus is on improving quality of life for the patient and providing support for the family.

“Ultimately our priority is to support our patients, their families and friends with care, compassion and confidentiality.”

Read more about named funds