THOMASVILLE, Pa. —
A home in York County offers an option for people near the end of life to pass away without being in an institutional facility.
Pappus House is located in Thomasville. The nonprofit is one of the only homes of its kind in York County.
Ellen Chase’s mom, Dorothy, is a new resident.
“My mom is wonderful, of course. She’s very caring, and she’s very giving and thoughtful,” she said.
“Pappus House is for our community. It’s for anybody who needs that 24/7 end-of-life care,” Amy Jansky said.
Jansky oversees the eight-bedroom home featuring all the comfort people need in their final weeks of life.
“Our admission process is based on you’re under the care of a hospice agency. You have a prognosis of about three months or less,” she said.
Time is something residents don’t have much of, but the calm, peacefulness of the home is what families like Chase’s want.
She’s grateful her mother made the decision to be there herself.
“She said, ‘I’m 96 years old. I’ve lived a wonderful life, and having further treatment is not going to give me quality of life,'” Chase said. “It really does take away a lot of the guilt of not being able to have her at home anymore. I know she needs to be here, and I know why she’s here. It’s tough. My head knows it, but my heart isn’t ready to know that part of it.”
“I think most people want to die in their own community, in their backyard. If they can’t die in their own house, they want to die close to it,” Jansky said. “If we are blessed enough to have a slow decline versus a traumatic death, this is, in my opinion, where you want to be. Just helping people in their greatest time is just a gift.”
Pappus House receives no government or insurance funding, and it doesn’t turn people away due to an inability to pay. It relies on the community for support and has fundraisers throughout the year.