About

With the growing caregiver crisis in end-of-life care and the inadequate resources of the health care system, Omega Homes have emerged as havens of comfort, peace and support for people in need who are dying. These homes are known informally and collectively by many different names, including Social Model Hospice Homes, Comfort Care Homes, and Homes for the Dying.

What's an Omega Home? It's a home that's:

  • designed for and totally focused on non-medical care at the end of life
  • independent and a freestanding 501c3 nonprofit organization
  • in a collaborative working relationship with the resident’s hospice (medical) care team
  • not a hospital, nursing home, hospice, or medical facility
  • funded by community and family support
  • staffed by volunteers and/or paid caregivers who are considered “extended family”
  • complementary and not duplicative to what already exists in the community
  • created by the local community for the local community
  • reflective of the spirit of the people and the culture of the local community
  • inclusive and open to all people, according to local regulations
  • simply “home and family” and carries the heart of everything that means

Our innovative model of non-medical care in a community home offers a comfort-based, person-centered home-away-from-home for people in the last months and days of life. Varying in size, appearance and internal policies, yet sharing a common foundation and philosophy, there are currently 100+ open or developing Omega homes located in multiple states across the US.

Read our member spotlight on the C-TAC blog.

After four and a half years of building our vision—with the generous support of many—The Lily House held a ribbon-cutting ceremony in late September 2023. We then welcomed our first resident—Janice—in early October.

It is hard to describe the exhilaration we felt in anticipation of Janice’s arrival—but we knew we were ready to care for her with unbounded love. We prepared her room with fresh flowers, made her bed with soft flannel sheets and adjusted the blinds for a view of the holly trees outside her window.

Janice was with us for three months. During that time, our love for her grew as we cared for her. We prepared all her favorite foods, read, sang and played music for her, braided her hair, held her hand, adored her in her favorite dresses and spoke with her about her end-of-life journey.

With her eldest sister at her side for her final breath, Janice radiated a calmness of spirit and a readiness to die—which she did with one final deep breath and audible sigh of release. After death, we laid Janice in honor. We held a home funeral where Lily House staff and volunteers joined Janice’s family to celebrate her life and bear witness to her death. As a final act of love, we shrouded Janice in white linen and fuchsia-colored sashes, and adorned her with flowers. Janice will always hold a special place in our hearts as the first person to live with us.

Since opening our doors, we have supported seven individuals through to their final breath. We have three administrative staff (executive director, director of operations and volunteer coordinator), six resident care providers, six per diem care providers and sixty trained volunteers. Every day at the Lily House feels like a miracle, a gift, a blessing, a joy. So much to be grateful for—including the guiding light that is the Omega Home Network. Thank you.

Dawn Walsh
Executive Director, The Lily House - Wellfleet, MA

Board of Directors

Kelley Scott, BSN, RN, CHPN

Kelley Scott, BSN, RN, CHPN

PresidentClarehouse
Jo Ellen Strieter

Jo Ellen Strieter

Vice PresidentToni and Trish House
Kim Adams

Kim Adams

SecretaryThe Lily House
Ashley Tack

Ashley Tack

Treasurer
Diane Rudholm

Diane Rudholm

DirectorNewaygo County Compassion Home
Steven Cozart

Steven Cozart

DirectorHospice Homes of Genesee and Lapeer Counties
Jennifer Clark, MD

Jennifer Clark, MD

Director
Beth Lynn Hoey

Beth Lynn Hoey

Director

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