LEWISTON – An Auburn nonprofit group was given a statewide award for building a place where people can go to spend their final days.

Androscoggin Home Health and Hospice opened the 14-bed facility in November. It’s the first in-house hospice center in the state, said President Julie Shackley.

“We are thrilled” by the award, she said.

Created in 2001, the annual Joe Mayo award is named for the longtime clerk of the Maine House of Representatives who suffered from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or Lou Gehrig’s disease.

Maine Hospice Council Inc. Executive Director Kandyce Powell said, “The creative vision, dedication, commitment and hard work of Androscoggin Home Health and Hospice and its community supporters truly exemplifies the spirit of Joe Mayo.”

She said she hopes that similar organizations in other regions of the state will follow suit. A spike in elderly population over the next two decades is predicted for the state.

“We need to plan now,” she said.

Fewer than one-third of Mainers are able to die in their homes surrounded by their families, the statewide advocacy group stated in a written release Thursday.

Shackley said the hospice house, in a large natural setting, is designed and decorated like a home. There is a communal kitchen and living room for families of residents to use. Within each suite, family members will find a convertible couch for overnight accommodations along with a small refrigerator and a family sitting area.

Residents nearing the end of their lives are offered pain management as well as treatment of their symptoms, Shackley said.

The hospice house cost $3 million to build. It operates on money that comes from Medicare, MaineCare, private insurance and fundraising, she said.

It subsidizes some patients, Shackley said. “That’s why fundraising is critical.”

Currently, 10 of the 14 suites are occupied, she said.

Mayo’s sister, Teresa, who is a member of the Maine Hospice Council board presented the award recently, saying, “Thankfully, Joe was able to live his last days at home as he wished. That is not possible for everyone or desired by all.” Residential hospice, she said, “is a much-needed option for Maine.”

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