YORK COUNTY, Pa. — As you walk through Pappus House, you can feel a sense of peace.
The community home in York County provides round-the-clock care to its hospice residents.
"Everyone is going to face death someday," said executive director Amy Janski. "Death doesn't discriminate, and everybody is deserving of as good of a death as possible, and that’s our mission here—to create an opportunity for a peaceful, dignified passing."
After losing her grandparents, Janski knew she wanted to provide a less stressful end-of-life experience for others.
"They both ended up passing away in a hospital," said Janski. "So, my reason for being here is to make a better ending for others. To help them to be able to pass in a home. Not in an institutional setting."
The newly expanded 8-bedroom home in Thomasville is filled with features to allow residents to live as fully and as comfortably as possible during their stay.
And the resident cat makes this house feel like a home, roaming the grounds and cuddling up with residents. Janski says money raised through Give Local York goes directly back into resident care.
"We ask a daily rate here, but we don't deny people based on finances," said Janski. "So Give Local York enables us to make sure our home is truly a community home that's open to everyone in need."
Expansion projects on the grounds are also in the works to help loved ones and their family members cherish every moment.
"Here, when you are dying in a home-like setting, it’s a natural part of life. It's not a medical event and you can give that pause," said Janski. "You can pause and take in everything that is special about that person's life, and it becomes a sacred time."