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We’ve put together the most commonly asked questions and the latest answers. We’ll update periodically, so come back and visit! 

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About the Making Moments Project

What is the purpose of the campaign?

The Making Moments campaign is a special fundraising effort focused on two investments that together form the heart of the project: construction of a new Christopher House and the purchase and renovation of a new administrative home for Hospice Austin. The combined effect is to transform both the inpatient experience and the organization’s daily operations so that patients and families are served with greater efficiency, serenity, and privacy.

The Making Moments campaign supports a total project estimated at approximately $30 million. The campaign’s working goal is to raise $22 million toward that amount, with the balance expected from real estate proceeds associated with selling the Spicewood Springs office and the current Christopher House on MLK Jr. Blvd.

Our services have outgrown our spaces: our office serves as the central hub for our in-home care patient program (the majority of our patients). The growth of our programs and the associated needs require a more accessible and larger space. And, Christopher House has outgrown what the current site can reasonably support. Both external factors (nearby construction, lack of parking) and internal design (lack of meeting space, private space for families), make this an unsustainable permanent home. These limitations challenge families and staff at the most tender moments. In short, our capacity to provide deeply personal, high-acuity hospice care is increasingly constrained by the building itself. To serve families with the dignity they deserve, we must build a new Christopher House and relocate our administrative home.

The campaign is well underway, and we aim to complete all fundraising (meaning one hundred percent of the goal in pledged commitments and/or cash) by December 2027.

The campaign safeguards access to high-acuity inpatient hospice for people whose symptoms cannot be managed at home, preserves dignity and privacy for families during the most tender moments of life, and provides clinicians with spaces that support excellence without interruption. It also reduces avoidable hospitalizations by ensuring an appropriate and compassionate inpatient setting when home is no longer feasible.

Although there are two major components, this is one coordinated effort. First, Hospice Austin will purchase and adapt a new administrative home. This is the operational hub for our daily care—where clinical teams deploy, where community and bereavement services are delivered, and where medical supplies are managed for the 325+ patients served at any given time in their homes or at nursing facilities. Addressing the office first ensures continuity and strengthens daily care across the region. Second, we will build the new Christopher House at 3207 Ferguson Lane, purpose-designed for modern inpatient hospice rather than adapted from a prior use.

Please refer to the Project Investment Detail insert.

Beginning in 2019, Hospice Austin undertook a careful, multi-disciplinary review that engaged senior leadership, the board of directors, engineers, architects, and real estate experts. A comprehensive feasibility study and bed-need analysis, funded by  local foundations, examined patient demographics, ZIP-code and referral patterns, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) utilization and billing data, and long-term trends in hospice demand. The analysis confirmed that the current Christopher House site could not be responsibly renovated or expanded—building upward or underground would be cost-prohibitive and require relocating patients during construction. In 2019, the board approved moving forward  
with land acquisition on Ferguson Lane and with campaign planning. Despite a delay in plans due to COVID-19, the project restarted with a refreshed feasibility assessment in 2024, which reaffirmed the original conclusions and underscored those findings.

The new Christopher House is being designed from the ground up for inpatient hospice care. Patient rooms will be arranged to provide quiet views and outdoor access, families will have private meeting rooms and a dedicated chapel and serenity room, and the service traffic from funeral homes will be separated from family and clinical areas. Pharmacy and supply spaces will expand, and interdisciplinary team rooms will allow for collaboration and debriefs without displacing families. Finally, the inclusion of warm-shelled rooms at the time of construction preserves flexible growth if future needs demand expansion.

Hospice Austin will break ground when a majority of cash has been received through a combination of real estate proceeds and pledge payments or outright gifts, as determined by the Board of Directors. This approach reflects our commitment to proceed prudently and protect the organization throughout construction.

The campaign is led by organizational leadership, Hospice Austin’s Operating Board of Directors and Fund Board of Directors, and the Making Moments volunteer campaign committee. We’re honored to have a robust committee of volunteer leaders passionate to support this cause, including:

Oscar Robinson, Campaign Chair
Val Newberg, Honorary Chair
Beth Granger, Campaign Advisor
Dr. John Sandbach, Campaign Advisor
Bobbi Topfer, Campaign Advisor
Robin Banister
Dinah Barksdale
Brande Draper
Jocelyn Johnson Amstutz
Jan Lehman
Sylvia Maggio
Lauren Maher
Michele Robinson Gregory
Leslie Timmerman
Beth Walker

Waiting lists are very rare. With most patients staying at Christopher House approximately 5-7 days, we are able to accommodate admissions needs. While occasional surges happen, they are not routine. The plan adds two additional beds now, and the building will be constructed with three warm-shelled rooms—spaces with core infrastructure in place so they can be finished out quickly and with minimal disruption if utilization increases.

Data and experience indicate that our community does not require a large number of additional inpatient beds. Preference remains overwhelmingly for home-based care, and the current pattern of need does not justify a broad inpatient expansion. Adding two beds addresses the demand we actually see, while warm-shelling three additional rooms provides prudent flexibility if utilization grows.

Purchasing and adapting an existing building is a faster, less risky, and more cost-effective route than constructing a new administrative facility. It allows Hospice Austin to resolve parking and space constraints quickly, expand counseling and bereavement services, improve clinical collaboration, and direct more resources toward patient care.

Given the lot size, surrounding construction, and the operational realities of caring for critically ill patients in an inpatient setting, renovation at the current Christopher House site is not practical. Building up or down would be extraordinarily disruptive and cost-prohibitive, and it would require relocating patients during construction. The current administrative space also lacks the infrastructure and capacity needed to support today’s clinical operations, supply management, and family services.

Please contact Robin Clemons,
Chief Development Officer, at 512-342-4790 or rclemons@hospiceaustin.org for all questions. 

About Giving to Making Moments

Can I make a multi-year pledge?

Yes. Many donors fulfill their commitments over an extended period of time. This campaign allows a pledge period of up to five years. You may choose pledge payment intervals including annually, bi-annually, quarterly, and monthly. The Development team is happy to work with you to craft a timeline that fits your circumstances.

Hospice Austin gratefully accepts cash, appreciated securities, IRA qualified charitable distributions, gifts from donor-advised fund, grants, real estate, in-kind contributions, and a variety of planned giving arrangements. The Development team can provide details for any of these options.

Yes. Contributions are tax-deductible to the full extent permitted by law, and a gift receipt will be provided for your records.

Yes. Naming opportunities exist for rooms, program areas, outdoor spaces, gardens, and other elements of the project. As availability continues to change during the project, a current menu of opportunities is available upon request.

We understand that life can take unexpected turns. Donors may contact the Development office at any time to discuss adjustments to a pledge, and we will work together to find a solution.

Yes. Tribute gifts are welcome and may be recognized in campaign materials or through naming opportunities if desired.

Gifts to the Making Moments campaign directly support building the new Christopher House as well as the purchase and renovation of a new administrative home.

Every contribution – whether a one-time gift or a pledged amount – at any level, is appreciated and needed. Click here to see the interactive gift level for a breakdown of some common gifts. Even a gift of $3 a day is a contribution of $5,475 for the life of the campaign. Thank you!

About Hospice Austin's Christopher House

How was the location for the new Christopher House chosen?

The Ferguson Lane property was selected following the 2019 feasibility study and bed-need analysis. That work examined where families live, how and where hospice services are used across the region, and long-term trends in demand, incorporating billing and utilization data. The findings affirmed that Ferguson Lane is ideally situated to serve our five-county area. The 2024 bed-need analysis is available upon request for those who wish to review the underlying data and methodology.

We care for patients across the lifespan—from infancy to 90+ year olds—and, as a whole, the population we serve is younger than national averages. We regularly see patients in their 30s and 40s at Christopher House. The new facility is designed to support families of all ages with appropriate spaces for reflection, gathering, and rest.

While most people are hardwired for home at the end of life, Christopher House serves those whose symptoms cannot be safely or comfortably managed in a home setting, often because medical interventions are needed as frequently as hourly, especially for complex pain management. Christopher House is designed and preserved for these patients to ensure they have access to the medical intervention needed for comfort and care in their final days.

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