LakeView Hospice Home celebrates 25 years

For 25 years, a home in La Mesa has offered San Diego families something especially meaningful during one of life's most difficult times: a peaceful place to be together.

LakeView Hospice Home, Sharp HospiceCare's first residential-like hospice home, opened in 2001 with a vision of providing compassionate end-of-life care in a warm, home-like setting. Since then, it has cared for thousands of patients and families while helping create a model of care that has expanded across San Diego County.

This year, Sharp HospiceCare is celebrating LakeView's 25th anniversary and honoring the patients, families, caregivers and community members who have shaped its legacy.

"LakeView was founded on the idea that patients with complex needs at the end of life deserve exceptional care in a setting that feels peaceful, personal and comforting," says Suzi Johnson, vice president of Sharp Hospice and Palliative Care. "Twenty-five years later, that same commitment continues to guide the care we provide."

A home when families need it most

Hospice care focuses on comfort and quality of life for people with serious illnesses who are nearing the end of life. While many people receive hospice care in their own homes, some require a higher level of support because of their symptoms or medical needs.

LakeView provides short-term, around-the-clock care for hospice patients with complex medical needs. Nurses, doctors, social workers, chaplains, home health aides and other members of the hospice team work together to manage symptoms while supporting patients and their loved ones.

But for families, the experience is often about much more than medical care.

Phil Overlund experienced that firsthand when his wife, Margaret, received care at LakeView before her death in 2021.

"The experience at LakeView was wonderful," Overlund says. "Everything went so smoothly, and the staff made us feel like we belonged. They were really there for us when we needed them."

The home's welcoming environment gives families space to spend meaningful time together while the hospice team focuses on caring for their loved one.

"I felt privileged to have Sharp HospiceCare care for my wife," Overlund says. "LakeView is here in our community for people who may not realize today that they or someone they love could need it someday."

A legacy built by the community

LakeView's story began with an extraordinary act of generosity. The home was donated to Sharp HospiceCare by a community member, helping establish a new way to provide specialized hospice care outside a traditional hospital setting.

"Our hospice homes are special places, made possible by the generosity of our community," says Kate Wayne, vice president of Philanthropy of Sharp Regional Hospitals. "As a not-for-profit organization, continued support helps ensure these homes remain available for families who need them, while also making meaningful programs, like We Honor Veterans, Memory Bears, spiritual care, bereavement services and music therapy, possible."

For Overlund, supporting LakeView has become a meaningful way to honor Margaret’s memory.

“I donate because I want others to have the same experience my wife had at LakeView,” he says. “The staff made us feel cared for and supported, and I want other families to have that same opportunity.”

From one home to four

LakeView's impact reaches far beyond the patients and families who have passed through its doors.

Its success helped pave the way for Sharp HospiceCare to open additional hospice homes across San Diego County: BonitaView, ParkView and, most recently, Moore MountainView Hospice Home in Poway.

Together, the four homes expand access to specialized hospice care for patients whose symptoms or medical needs require around-the-clock support.

"LakeView showed what is possible when compassionate care and community generosity come together," Johnson says. "Its legacy can be seen not only in the thousands of families it has served, but also in every Sharp HospiceCare home that followed."

As LakeView celebrates this milestone, its original purpose remains unchanged: to provide patients with comfort and dignity while giving loved ones the support and space to focus on what matters most: being together.

Looking ahead, sustaining Sharp HospiceCare's homes will require the same spirit of community support that has shaped LakeView's legacy.

"For 25 years, our teams have been invited into some of the most tender moments in the lives of our patients and families," Johnson says. "It is a privilege we never take for granted. As we look to the future, philanthropic support of the Sharp HospiceCare Endowment will help ensure these special homes and the compassionate care they provide remain available to San Diego families for generations to come."

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