Blue Ridge Care expands bereavement care with new Center for Hope & Healing

Blue Ridge Care expands bereavement care with new Center for Hope & Healing 
Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 11/1/24 
Blue Ridge Care has unveiled its new Center for Hope & Healing, a facility dedicated to offering comprehensive grief care. The Virginia-based nonprofit hospice, palliative care and PACE provider financed the center through philanthropic donations. The facility is located in the same building as Blue Ridge’s PACE program, according to CEO Jason Parsons. At the center, Blue Ridge bereavement care staff will offer specialized programs, workshops, support groups and individual counseling. “The center is a central organizing unit of our mission fulfillment in the areas of grief, family support and loss in a place people can come to that’s welcoming, inviting and centered around hope and healing,” Parsons told Hospice News. ... The center was built to create a relaxing atmosphere to help put visitors at ease, according to Parsons, with a sky blue color palette and several murals depicting natural scenes. In one display, a collection of rocks symbolizes the weight of grief. Visitors can write a message on the rocks to “leave that weight behind,” Parsons said. They can also paint their loved ones’ names on a mural of a branching tree in the lobby area.