UP Health System – Marquette and Beacon House: A Partnership in Hope and Healing

By Mary Tavernini-Dowling, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Beacon House

The decades-old partnership between Beacon House and UP Health System – Marquette (UPHS – Marquette) runs deep. It’s a relationship rooted in the history of the hospital and its growth, with the common bonds of hope and healing. With a mutual commitment to improving the lives of our neighbors, together we care for patients and their families when they need us the most.

Beacon House grew out of physician and community leaders' concern for patients being far from home to receive the extraordinary specialty care that this regional, Level II Trauma Center provides for the residents of the Upper Peninsula (UP), and those who travel here to enjoy the beauty but then find themselves facing life-threatening illness or injury. The concerns were that without family support, the healing process would suffer and that the distance from home would create financial hardship for those seeking specialty care. Patients come from every corner of the UP—which spans over 16,000 miles—and because of the love and support of both our organizations, they never have to worry about where they’re going to stay, or how they’ll be able to afford it during a medical crisis.

In Matt Kemery’s case, his life took an unexpected turn from enjoying a sightseeing motorcycle tour of the shores of the Great Lakes to being airlifted to UPHS – Marquette with life-threatening injuries. As soon as the chopper landed, Matt was instantly in the incredible care of a world-class medical staff of over 200 doctors and 1,800 other professionals at this 222-bed hospital that provides 65 specialties and subspecialties. While he was just one of 350,000 patients to come through the doors of UPHS – Marquette in a given year, he received attention and care as if he were their only patient. And when his mother, Jackie, was called by the attending staff while on her Florida vacation, hearing how dire his condition was made her fly to his side without a thought to her own accommodations or needs. She arrived, fully committed to seeing him through operations and numerous procedures that kept him in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Not knowing if Matt would be able to walk again, Jackie accepted the long-term commitment with nothing but determination to see him through. Then it was time for her to rest, gather her strength and make some plans.

Thankfully, the newly built Mariucci Family Beacon House was right next door. We welcomed Jackie in with open arms, eased her concerns about what it might cost to stay here and helped her make this her home away from home. While she was here to support Matt, we were here to support her. Making sure she had the rest she needed, hot meals after long days at the hospital and shoulders to cry on when it was at its worst.

At Beacon House, we can create these supportive moments over and over, thanks to the hundreds of individuals and organizations, including UPHS – Marquette, who helped us raise over 6 million dollars to build this hospitality house on the land right next to the hospital. Understanding how important proximity is for loved ones in critical care, UPHS – Marquette also donated the land we’re built on, to be this close and change these lives.

As a donation-based nonprofit hospitality house, we ask our guests to contribute the best they can afford to help offset the cost of their stay. We often find that the financial impact of their medical condition does not leave them much to work with, so we are reliant on the support of our stakeholders and community partners for additional support to make ends meet. We’re immensely grateful that UPHS – Marquette recognizes Beacon House is an important part of the healthcare continuum and generously donates to help offset some of our expenses. Many of the hospital employees have also been long-term supporters and help raise funds through our “906 Pledge” drives, casual Fridays, purchasing raffle tickets and attending fundraising events. UPHS employees are tirelessly providing extraordinary medical care for their patients, taking it a step further by helping us do what we do through their generosity. They know that by supporting the Beacon House, they are supporting the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) parents who couldn’t imagine heading back home without their newborn baby, the cancer patient who stays with us for two months during their radiation therapy, and the mother who is committed to supporting her son through the recovery of one of the most terrifying events in his life. Support for families like Matt and Jackie, with recovery and returning home—their ultimate goal.

As the CEO of the Steve Mariucci Family Beacon House, I consider it an honor to be a part of an organization that has become the “home away from home” for close to 100,000 people, providing over 350,000 overnight stays worth over 64 million dollars in lodging, home-cooked meals and other supportive services over the past 30 years. As a community partner to the hospital, we are here around the clock and know that when an ambulance arrives from the distant corners of the UP or the sound of a helicopter is overhead, our phone is likely to ring with an emotional caller whose loved one is being transported here for emergency care. With confidence, we assure them that the finest medical care in the country is found at this hospital and that we’ll be right next door to welcome them in with open arms. Soon they’ll find that we’re here to help them through whatever they face in the days and weeks ahead, and while there’s no place like home, it will feel like home in no time.

It occurs to me that the entire healthcare environment has been impacted by so many challenges in recent years, but the dedicated medical providers at UPHS have shown remarkable resiliency and continue to offer the most extraordinary medical care to everyone who comes through their doors. We know this because the patients and their families come through ours.

As I watch another chopper touch down just outside my window, I’m reminded that to be a community partner to this dedicated group of medical professionals is a privilege and am so grateful for the opportunity to serve our UP neighbors together. Excuse me, our phone is ringing.

The Hospitality House of the Upper Peninsula (UP) is a 501 c 3 private, nonprofit organization that owns and operates the Steve Mariucci Family Beacon House, a 22-room hospitality house that features comforting amenities including a children’s playroom, 2 guest kitchens, a chef kitchen, dining room, tv lounges, a chapel, outdoor patio, deck and porches, a floral workshop, conference and banquet rooms. The Wig Salon, located in the Beacon House, offers its complimentary service to all UP cancer patients losing their hair due to treatment. The organization also operates a gift shop and coffee shop in UP Health System – Marquette known as “Gift Well” and “Coffee for a Cause” to provide employee and patient support with affordable, unique clothing, jewelry, gifts and Starbucks brand coffees.