Organizers hoping to open a planned end-of-life “comfort care” home in Davidson or Cornelius this year are continuing to search for a house or building along the N.C. 115 corridor in the towns. And as they search, they’re starting training for volunteer “angels” who would staff the home.

The first of two training sessions is planned Saturday, Jan. 28, at 10 a.m. at Serenity House in Mooresville, the area’s first “comfort care home.” Serenity House, which cared for 30 people at the end of their lives in 2011, is at 110 Centre Church Road, off I-77 Exit 33.

Serenity House Executive Director Cheryl Pletcher describes “comfort care” as an end-of-life alternative that provides a neighborhood home-like setting for people in their final days or weeks.

A home in Davidson or Cornelius would be the second in this area for the nonprofit Carolina Comfort Coalition. The group is seeking a suitable house or business location with ambulance access and available parking. Among the sites Ms. Pletcher has looked at so far as potential locations is the former Davidson Clinic building on South Main Street. She also has had requests to look at private homes that could soon be available.

She hopes to identify a site and open the new home this year, she said. Ideally, the group would like to find a property owner to donate the site, the arrangement with Serenity House in Mooresville.

The location probably needs to be “mixed-use zoning, or commercial … because it’s a new model,” she said.

The Davidson-Cornelius house would provide housing for two hospice patients who are unable to remain at home for end of life care. “A comfort care home is a sanctuary of peace and love, a haven for those seeking a dignified death in a family atmosphere,” Ms. Pletcher said.

She’s also trying to raise “seed” money to establish the second site, which she says is a “social or family model” of a hospice house. The home’s services are free, provided to anyone who needs them thanks to donations.

WANT TO VOLUNTEER?

Ms. Pletcher said she’s like to get a minimum of 35 volunteers by the time the house opens. Mooresville operates with about 55 volunteers. Both men and women are needed as evening, weekend, or weekday “angels,” she said.

Volunteers are trained to provide care very much like what a family provides at home for a sick person, Cheryl Plecher said. Part one of the training for new volunteers on Jan. 28 will include personal care, oxygen therapy, bed making, use of electric bed, and resident safety issues.

A second day of training is planned Feb. 4 and will include the use of medical equipment, turning and positioning for comfort, and a class on helping families.

The training will be held at Serenity House in Mooresville at 110 Centre Church Rd., Mooresville 28117. Call Joanne Durham at 704 664-2004 or email carolinacomfort@windstream.net to register for the classes.

RELATED COVERAGE

July 20, 2011, “Organizers pitch ‘comfort care’ as a new end of life option”