NORWICH – Flowers and vegetable plants will decorate the pavilion in East Park today as Hospice, a not-for-profit agency committed to improving the quality of life for county residents with a life limiting illness, hosts its annual plant sale fundraiser.
The Hospice plant sale will be held from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. today in East Park. Flower pots and hanging baskets comprised of varied floral arrangements will be sold to support the efforts of Hospice in its largest fundraiser of the year. In addition, the organization will sell barbecued chicken in the park beginning at 11:30 a.m.
Earlier this month, Hospice employees and volunteers distributed nearly $37,000 worth of merchandise from Pires Flower Basket in Norwich and Alcotts Florist in Waterville to pickup locations in Afton, Bainbridge, Greene, Norwich, Oxford and Sherburne for patrons who ordered plants when the agency held its pre-order sale.
“It’s definitely a big project. We utilize probably 50 volunteers,” said Hospice Development and Community Relations Coordinator Donna Wood-Craig. Each year, net sales of flowers from the pre-order sale combined with the sales in East Park averages $24,000, she added.
Many people question why Hospice conducts fundraisers when insurance covers expenses for services provided by the agency, said Wood-Craig. “Insurance covers the services we provide, but we are reimbursed at a per-diem rate that’s set by Medicare,” she explained.
According to her, Hospice receives reimbursement from insurance companies of $134.46 per patient, per day. The actual costs of tending to each patient averages $158.83, leaving a gap of more than $24.
Said Wood-Craig, “That adds up. That gap needs to be filled by fundraisers, grants, and donations by individuals and businesses.”
Thus far, the Hospice plant sale has proven to be a huge success for the agency. Nearly 27 percent of the organization’s budget is reliant upon fundraiser and donation dollars, Wood-Craig noted. To keep the plant sale a success, she said she has tried to incorporate something new every year for the last 16 years she has organized the event. In that time, the function has grown from raising less than $800 to nearly $40,000.
This year’s addition was tomato plants and “we’ve done very well with them,” she said. “With a new item, you never know how it’s going to turn out ... We’ve had 610 customers so far this year; one-third of them ordered a tomato plant.”
The Hospice plant sale is held the third Wednesday of every May. Anyone who misses the sale can still contribute to Hospice through personal donations. Flowers from the Hospice fundraiser are also available at Pires Flower Basket.
Hospice of Chenango County provides services in pain management, symptom control, personal care, therapy, counseling, supplies and equipment, and medications. For more information, call 334-3556 or visit the Hospice website at hospicechenango.org.