{"id":37479,"date":"2026-01-15T13:38:06","date_gmt":"2026-01-15T18:38:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/?p=37479"},"modified":"2026-01-22T16:06:00","modified_gmt":"2026-01-22T21:06:00","slug":"hope-house-to-open-wellness-grief-caregiving-hub-in-community","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/hope-house-to-open-wellness-grief-caregiving-hub-in-community\/","title":{"rendered":"Hope House to open Wellness, Grief & Caregiving Hub in community"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Grief can be a complex journey, but it\u2019s not a journey you need to travel alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is a philosophy that has driven Hope House Community Hospice since it was founded as Hospice King-Aurora-Richmond Hill in 1983, and it is one that continues to push them forward as they prepare to open up their new Wellness, Grief & Caregiver Hub in the local community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hope House recently moved from their long-time home on Industrial Parkway South, a facility that was shared with other non-profits, and has planted new roots on the east side of Yonge Street, just south of Church Street.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the new digs, comes a new approach and a new umbrella name for their community programs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Wellness, Grief and Caregiving Hub is a unique name for what Heidi Bonner, Executive Director of Hope House Community Hospice, calls a \u201cunique purpose.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think primarily when people think of a hospice, they think of beds and they think of end-of-life care,\u201d she says. \u201cWe do provide end-of-life care in people\u2019s homes, but a big part of the work that we do with the community is helping people along their journey. We provide supports right from the time of diagnosis to either the palliative path or through to recovery. This space identifies who it is and the type of supports that we are providing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA big part of what we do is helping people from the time of diagnosis, helping caregivers, and then the bereavement side of things as well after the death of a loved one. Through our children\u2019s, youth and family programs and the bereavement program, we\u2019re helping kids and youth who are coping with the death of a loved one, or coping through a serious illness diagnosis, and helping along that journey as well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new name, she says, helps foster a \u201cwelcoming, safe space\u201d that serves the community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The community can get their first look at the Wellness, Grief & Caregiving Hub on Friday, January 23 at 15105 Yonge Street, Unit 105.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Members of the community are invited to pop by between 2 and 4 p.m. to take in the space, learn more about programs, and stick around the formal part of the celebration where Mayor Tom Mrakas will be on hand for the formal ribbon cutting, while Aurora-Oak Ridges-Richmond Hill MPP Michael Parsa is slated to stop by to celebrate Hope House\u2019s receipt of a grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe will have volunteers here who will be able to talk about their experiences being a volunteer, and each of our programs will have a display area to talk about the programming we provide as well,\u201d says Bonner. \u201cIt\u2019s going to be great to have the community come through our door, check us out, and learn a little bit about what we do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As they look ahead to their first full year in their new base, Bonner says it will be a busy several months for Hope House, whether working from their Hub or in the homes of clients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re doing a lot of creativity programming this year,\u201d she says. \u201cIt seems to be a way to wellness, where people are exploring their creativity. They\u2019re coming into our space and we\u2019re having Crafting for Wellbeing, which happens on Fridays. We\u2019re going to do some Vision Board workshops as well. We have an art therapist that we\u2019re working with, and we have meditation and chair yoga, but there seems to be this change in direction to creativity and art-based programming that seems to really appeal to people. We\u2019ve had really, really good attendance at these opportunities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOne of the [other] programs is called \u2018Who Am I Now?\u2019 After the death of a loved one, [sometimes there\u2019s the question] of who am I? \u2018I\u2019m not a husband anymore. I\u2019m not a wife anymore.\u2019 It\u2019s helping people sort of identify themselves and their new path, and it has been very powerful. We\u2019re also trying to build the teem program as we found that it\u2019s difficult for youth and teens as they\u2019re so busy with their school and activities. We\u2019re starting to do monthly get-togethers and it\u2019s been really successful getting teens who have gone through a similar experience to talk openly to each other about the things that they can\u2019t necessarily to their friends \u2013 there will be more of that programming for teens this year.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more information about Hope House Programs, their Wellness, Grief, and Caregiving Hub, and much more, visit hopehousehospice.com.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Brock Weir
Editor
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter<\/strong><\/p>\n\r\n\"Facebook\"<\/a>\"twitter\"<\/a>\"mail\"<\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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