The Benefits of Hospice
The Southern California Hospice Foundation was established in 2002 to promote awareness of palliative care and hospice options for terminally ill children and adults, helping to ease the transition with comfort, dignity, and respect for those at the end-of-life.
Hospice prioritizes the wishes of the patient and family with the holistic treatment of the body, spirit, and mind. The goal of hospice is to focus on quality at the end of life, allowing patients and their friends and families time and space to make lasting memories.
In 2017 we honored the first 15 years of SoCal Hospice Foundation with a special celebration and this retrospective video.
We also launched our capital campaign for the Heavenly Home, demonstrating how our history and our vision for a revolution in hospice care have brought us to where we are today: building on the past in order to make a difference in the future, together.
Our Mission
Our mission is to deliver a breadth of resources to caregivers, families, and patients confronting the final stages of life. This is accomplished every single day through your support and our commitment to patient advocacy.
Our Vision
The Heavenly Home, which opened in February 2023 in Mission Viejo, is a live-in facility that will allow terminally ill residents to end life’s journey comfortably and in peace. It is an important option for people who need care and cannot, or prefer not, to die at home or in a hospital.
The Heavenly Home includes several spacious rooms designed to meet the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of its residents. There is also a family dining room, kitchen, patio access, and an inviting garden to encourage residents and their families to relax and take a much-needed break outdoors.
In addition to traditional hospice services provided by third-party medical hospices, residents will receive round-the-clock caregiving, which may include non-invasive symptom control measures to make the resident comfortable. Residents will also receive:
- Continuity of care through the last days of life, and inclusion of the family, if desired, in the care of their loved one
- Routine personal care such as bathing, dressing, toileting, feeding, and medication assistance
- Meal preparation, laundry, and housekeeping
- Comfort companions or volunteers
Our Staff
Michelle Wulfestieg Executive Director
With the heart of a servant-leader, Michelle Wulfestieg is a two-time stroke survivor who understands just how precious life is and believes that as long as you are here, you have a purpose. Her own health struggles drew her to the field of Hospice where she has dedicated her life’s work for the last ten years, which is described in her award-winning book, All We Have Is Today: A Story of Discovering Purpose.
Since 2010, she has served as the Executive Director the Southern California Hospice Foundation, a non-profit organization committed to enhancing the lives of terminally ill patients and their families. Today, Michelle hopes to be an inspiration to those who are struggling. Her greatest wish for you is that you’ll find your true purpose, using the gifts you were given to change a life, to make a difference, to do good, to be all that you can be.
Our Executive Director's Reason for Serving
Board Of Directors
Jim Denver
First Republic Bank Managing Director
Matt Didier
CBRE | Office Properties, First Vice President
Alfonso Galvez
TDW Risk Management Associates
Sandy Sligar
SMS Fabrications, INC., Vice-President of Administration
Hospice Advisory Council
The purpose of the Hospice Advisory Council is to increase awareness of hospice, educate the community about hospice, and provide a dignified environment to those at the end of their lifes through the Heavenly Home Project.
Carissa Bechtloff, MBA
City of Hope, Orange County: Senior Director of Business Development
Melissa Dean
Consultant: Writing, Editing, Investor and Media Relations
Rhonda L. Ducote
Apriem Advisors, President/Principal
John Hornburg
Philanthropist, Hospice Volunteer
Sue Kelly
Hoag Hospital, Oncology Certified R.N.
Steve Lazarian
CityWorks Management, Chief Operating Officer
Bruce A. Lazenby
Chairman of Hospice Advisory Council, Rose Hills Memorial Park and Mortuary, Executive Director of Business Development
Scott Schultz
RH Morris Insurance and Financial, Financial Advisor
Vana Surmanian
Philanthropist, Hospice Volunteer
Deborah Veady
Philanthropist, Hospice Advocate
Kay Walker
Attorney at Law
Mike Wolfgang
Professional EOS Implementer/Leadership Team Coach and Trainer EOS Worldwide