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Hospice House prayer room to be dedicated to Wassmuth

| September 9, 2010 9:00 PM

COEUR d'ALENE - A room in the new Hospice House operated by Hospice of North Idaho will be dedicated to the late Father Bill Wassmuth.

The meditation/prayer room in Idaho's first inpatient hospice facility will be named for the founding board member and first board chair of Hospice of North Idaho to honor his community contributions to end-of-life care and human rights.

"Hospice is the answer to the Human Rights issue for people who are dying. Father Bill was the first president of Hospice of North Idaho, and was a human rights hero locally and nationally," said Marshall Mend, a friend of Wassmuth's.

Wassmuth was the pastor of St. Pius X Catholic Church in Coeur d'Alene, chairman of the Kootenai County Task Force on Human Relations in 1984, the keynote speaker at Coeur d'Alene's first Martin Luther King Day celebration, winner of the Wallenberg Civic Award in New York City, North Idaho's first national recognition for its work to counter racism, and the first executive director of the Northwest Coalition Against Malicious Harassment in Seattle.

"We need to raise $100,000 to build the Wassmuth Prayer and Mediation Room in the Hospice House," said Amanda Miller, Hospice of North Idaho spokeswoman. "Right now, we are almost halfway there, with $40,000 dedicated to this room."

Donors will be recognized both on the Hospice House donor wall and in the prayer and meditation room. Donors to the Wassmuth Room include Stewart and Molly Butler, Marshall and Dolly Mend, Jim and Sandy Faucher, Dexter Yates, the Katie Weadick Memorial Fund, and the Weil Family.

Paul Weil, Hospice of North Idaho executive director, said Wassmuth's compassion and desire to treat people with dignity and respect made him an early champion for hospice care in the community.

Construction of the Hospice House, 2212 W. Prairie Ave., began in July. The project is expected to be completed in the summer of 2011. Hospice of North Idaho is still raising money for the Hospice House project, and is within $500,000 of its $3.2 million goal.

To donate to the Hospice House project or designate your donation to Father Wassmuth's Room, contact Amanda Miller, 772-7994.