Hospice of the Chesapeake, which set up shop in a tiny office on Benfield Boulevard in 1979 to introduce hospice care to Anne Arundel County, has grown into an agency that has benefited thousands of terminally ill people and their loved ones.
Now, the organization operates from recently expanded offices on Veterans Highway in Millersville and has announced plans for further growth: an inpatient hospice residence.
"Our hospice governing board has long recognized the need for a residence," said President Erwin Abrams, a key force behind the hospice's expansion. "And they have shown great vision in deciding to go ahead."
The residence is to include six bedrooms and baths, a kitchen, a dining room, a sitting room and a large deck. A staff of nurses and certified nursing assistants is to help provide hospice nursing, social work, chaplaincy and bereavement services. Mr. Abrams said the need for a hospice residence has been growing steadily.
"We particularly see a need among the elderly and others who live alone," he said. Without the residence, most of them would have to go into hospitals or other institutions, he said.
The hospice has not completed negotiations on a site, and officials would not say where the residence would be.
People are eligible for hospice care when they are in the final stages of terminal diseases such as cancer, heart disease, neurological disorders, pulmonary disease, Alzheimer's, Lou Gehrig's disease and acquired immune deficiency syndrome.
Information: 987-2003.
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The American Cancer Society has several holiday gift ideas.
You could donate to the society in memory of a loved one to support research, education and patient services. Or donate in honor of someone who has everything to show how much you care.
Call (410) 721-4304.
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Give the gift of life at the Holiday Blood Drive from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dec. 17, at Our Shepherd Lutheran Church on Benfield Road. The Red Cross' increased need at this time of year has been complicated in the last few months because 20 percent of the usual donors have not shown up. The Red Cross must collect 1,300 units of blood each day to meet the needs of 6.2 million people and patients in 84 area hospitals in the Greater Chesapeake and Potomac regions.
Information: 647-1658.
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The county Department of Recreation and Parks even has a gift idea this season: a 1995 parking pass. The $20 passes are valid at Quiet Waters and Downs parks and may be used for the rest of this year, too.
For more information, call 222-1777 or 222-6230.
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There are several sites along the B&A; Trail Park that Boy Scouts could use for their Eagle award projects, says Ranger Bob Hicks. Give him a call at 222-6244.
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You could find your last-minute decorations and gifts at the second annual Holiday Craft Fair from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 17, at the Columbian Center on Ritchie Highway. The fair is sponsored by the Curtis Bay Church of God.
Information: 437-4197.
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Did you know that the Ann Arrundel County Historical Society sponsors two browse and buy shoppes? One is on Old B&A; Boulevard at Jones Station Road, open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. The other is in the Benson-Hammond House on Aviation Boulevard near Baltimore-Washington International Airport. It is open Wednesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Both shops carry antiques, collectibles and jewelry, and the inventory changes daily.
For more information, call 544-3370 or 768-9518.
To get information about your group or event in the Central County neighbors column, call 647-1413.