SIUSLAW NEWS | SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2018 | 9A
Santa making visit to
Florence Justic Center
The Florence Police Auxil-
iary will host its annual Meet
Santa at the Florence Justice
Center, located at Ninth and
Greenwood streets, on Satur-
day, Dec. 15, from 3 to 5 p.m.
Children will be able to se-
lect a toy and have their pic-
Heartfelt House to open in June at RiverBend
ture taken with Santa.
The auxiliary is asking for
community toy donations,
unwrapped, for all ages.
Gifts can be dropped off
between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.,
Monday through Friday, at the
Justice Center before Dec. 14.
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Principal Broker
541 999-1314
82864 S Canary Rd – Location, Location! 40
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1749 Highway 101 • 541-997-1200
A Warm Coat.
A Cozy Blanket.
For the homeless and less fortunate,
these warm items are essential
during the winter months.
As part of Windermere’s long standing commitment
to help those in need, our Florence offi ce will be
collecting gently used coats and blankets November
5th – December 19th weekdays from 9am to 4pm.
You can drop them off at Windermere Real Estate/
Lane County 1625 12th Street. (541) 997-5926
HELP US SHARE THE WARMTH THIS WINTER.
Architectual images (above, below) of the Heartfelt House, which is currently under construction at RiverBend Hospital, is
scheduled to be completed this June, making 10 rooms available at minimal or no cost to families with family members
receiving longer treatment at PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Centers at RiverBend or University District.
As they celebrate Thanks-
giving this week, families
from as far away as Benton,
Douglas and Coos coun-
ties say they’re grateful for
the Heartfelt House, which
is under construction on
the RiverBend campus. The
20,208-square-foot house is
slated to open in June.
'It will be a home away from
home for out-of-town patients
needing treatments in Eu-
gene-Springfield and families
of patients who require long
stays at PeaceHealth Sacred
Heart Medical Centers at Riv-
erBend or University District.
The Heartfelt House will
have 20 rooms: a 10-room
wing for families of pediatric
patients and a 10-room wing
for families of adult patients.
“It’s one of the best things
that could happen to River-
Bend,” said Heather Swesso, a
Sutherlin resident whose two
daughters were born prema-
turely, requiring stays in the
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
Her youngest, Paisley, born
at 30 weeks, spent 78 days in
the NICU at RiverBend after
her birth in January 2016.
Swesso said she was lucky
to be able to stay at her aunt’s
house in Springfield during
that time. But even the short
drive from her aunt’s house to
DONATE NOW!
the hospital felt too long for
the new mom eager to check
on her fragile newborn.
When the Heartfelt House
is completed, visiting a loved
one will be as simple as a
5-minute walk across the
street,
“It’s going to put so many
peoples’ minds at ease because
they’re going to be able to be
right there,” Swesso said.
The Heartfelt House is a
$8.4-million project funded
entirely through philanthropy.
It is a collaboration between
PeaceHealth, which will own
the land and building, and
Ronald McDonald House
Charities, which will oversee
day-to-day operations.
Guests will pay from noth-
ing to a modest fee, depending
on their circumstances. But
no one will be turned away
because of inability to pay.
That lessens the financial
blow to families who already
are dealing with the stress of
illness, injury or other medi-
cal conditions.
Following a diagnosis of
prostate cancer and surgery
in June, Larry Wood, of North
Bend, needed 40 radiation
treatments over eight weeks.
He wanted to have the treat-
ments in the Eugene-Spring-
field area. But he couldn’t
18th ANNUAL ‘TREE OF GIVING’
Begins Monday, Nov. 26th
Maximize your donation by donating
to Cars for a Cause by Dec. 31st.
We accept cars, trucks, RVs, boats
& motorcycles CALL NOW!
Stop by for a coff ee or hot chocolate and cookies.
Select an ornament from the tree representing
gift requests for specifi c necessities by a high school student
in our community. Return gift s to us by Dec. 19,
to be distributed before Christmas break.
ccb#55030
1780 Kingwood St. • 541-997-8526
•Helps those in need in Lane County
• Charitable donation
•We do all the paperwork
commute from North Bend
and the cost to stay in a hotel
for two months — even at a
discounted rate — was pro-
hibitive.
Wood ended up staying at
the Children’s Miracle Net-
work/Lions Patient Family
Guest House on Patterson
Street, near University Dis-
trict.
“It was really nice,” Wood
said. “They provide just about
everything a hotel provides.
You could do your own laun-
dry. You share the kitchen. It’s
kind of a family.”
Wood said he's glad to hear
that the Heartfelt House will
have room for even more fam-
ilies.
The Heartfelt House antici-
pates serving up to 1,500 fam-
ilies a year, much more than
the 300 a year the Patterson
Street House could accommo-
date.
Dave and Sarah Hokama, of
Corvallis, have been dedicat-
ed advocates for the Heartfelt
House after their youngest
daughter, Gracie, was born 13
weeks early at RiverBend in
November 2015.
Sarah stayed at the Patter-
son Street guest house during
Gracie’s three months in the
NICU. She said she wished
she had been closer, so she
could have spent more time at
Gracie’s side.
“It’s exciting to be part of
this, to see the pieces come
together, and to think of the
future families who will ben-
efit from this,” she said after
a recent tour of the Heartfelt
House construction.
Christmas
Gift List
Toys • Books
Clothing
Houseware
Furniture
Gift Certifi cates
St. Vincent DePaul’s
2315 Hwy 101 541-997-8460
Open Daily
St. Vincent de Paul
2315 Hwy. 101 • Florence • 541-997-8460
We are your
gift giving
headquarters
PeaceHealth
Peace Harbor Volunteers
Gift Shop
PORT HOLE
PUBLISHING
179 Laurel Street, Suite D
FLORENCE
LET US PUBLISH
YOUR BOOK
PORT HOLE BOOKS
77567 Hwy. 101 • GARDINER
Open
Monday - Friday 10am-4pm
541-997-8412
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541-999-5725
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