Community Hospice & Palliative Care
A nonprofit hospice and palliative-care organization serving patients and families in Northeast Florida.
Last updated November 4, 2026
AI crawler reads
No AI crawler has read this profile since Oct 28, 2026.
Overview
Community Hospice & Palliative Care, historically known as Community Hospice of Northeast Florida, is a nonprofit hospice and palliative-care organization based in the Greater Jacksonville metropolitan area of Florida. It was established in 1979 by a small group that included nurses, minister Paul Richard Brenner, and community volunteers. The program initially operated from an office at Methodist Hospital and became the first hospice program in Northeast Florida. It was among the relatively small number of hospice programs operating in Florida when the state began establishing a hospice-licensing framework in the early 1980s. Community Hospice received its state license in 1983 and was also certified by Medicare that year. The organization provides hospice care for people with terminal illnesses, palliative care for patients with serious or life-limiting conditions, grief and bereavement support, and related family and community services. Its care model has included services delivered in patients’ homes, outreach offices, hospitals, nursing facilities, and dedicated inpatient Centers for Caring for individuals whose symptoms cannot be adequately managed in other settings. By 2008, the organization reported assisting nearly 1,000 patients each day and serving more than 6,000 patients during the year. It has described its coverage as reaching approximately 90 percent of the Greater Jacksonville market area. Community Hospice developed a regional network of inpatient and outreach facilities. The Earl B. Hadlow Center for Caring in Mandarin, opened in 1985, was its first residential facility and was later described as containing 38 beds. Other facilities included the George and Margaret Morris Center for Caring at the Shands Jacksonville Pavilion, the Dr. Gaston J. Acosta-Rua Center for Caring in west Jacksonville, the Anne and Donald McGraw Center for Caring at Mayo Clinic Hospital, and the Bailey Family Center for Caring at Flagler Hospital in St. Augustine. The organization also maintained outreach locations including Gateway and Nassau County offices. A significant part of the organization’s scope has been pediatric palliative care. In 2000, it helped establish Community PedsCare in collaboration with Wolfson Children’s Hospital, Nemours Children’s Clinic, and the University of Florida. The program was designed around the distinct medical, emotional, and practical needs of children with life-limiting or life-threatening conditions and their families. Community PedsCare received the 2008 Quality in Palliative Care Leadership Award. Education and community support have also been central to the brand. The Charles M. Neviaser Educational Institute provides professional and public education on pain management, the dying process, grief, advance directives, ethics, and other end-of-life subjects. In 2004, the institute and Mayo Clinic Jacksonville established a 12-month physician fellowship in palliative medicine. The Community Hospice Foundation, established in 2000, supports care and education through donations, planned gifts, estate gifts, and fundraising. Events such as Halloween Doors & More, Tree of Life, bingo nights, and the Community Hospice Thrift Shop have helped fund services for patients who cannot pay for care. The organization’s financing model has historically depended heavily on Medicare, which accounted for approximately 80 to 85 percent of hospice revenue according to the reference material. Additional support came from private insurance, patient and family contributions, foundation giving, and fundraising. Unlike many local nonprofit organizations, Community Hospice did not receive funding from the local United Way during the period described. Its activities have also extended beyond standard hospice services, including a homicide-survivor grief program and broad distribution of the Five Wishes advance-care-planning document. Community Hospice remains an active regional nonprofit care provider, although current leadership, financial details, and present operating scale are not established by the supplied sources.
History
Community Hospice & Palliative Care originated in 1979 as a volunteer-led hospice initiative in the Jacksonville area. Its founders included nurses, minister Paul Richard Brenner, and other local volunteers who worked from an office at Methodist Hospital. The organization became the first hospice program in Northeast Florida and helped establish hospice care as a formal regional service. When Florida began granting hospice licenses in the early 1980s, Community Hospice was one of only a limited number of programs operating in the state. It received its state license and Medicare certification in 1983. The organization subsequently built a broad service model combining home hospice, inpatient symptom management, palliative care, bereavement support, education, and community outreach. Its first residential facility, the Earl B. Hadlow Center for Caring in Mandarin, opened in 1985. Community Hospice also established an outreach center in St. Augustine that year. Over time, additional Centers for Caring were created in north Jacksonville, west Jacksonville, the Beaches area, and St. Johns County. These facilities were intended primarily for patients needing short-term or inpatient management of symptoms that could not be controlled in another care setting, while the wider program continued to serve patients in homes and community institutions. Community Hospice expanded its educational role through the Charles M. Neviaser Educational Institute. The institute provided instruction for healthcare professionals on pain, dying, grief, advance directives, and ethical issues in end-of-life care, while also offering public education. In 2004, it joined with Mayo Clinic Jacksonville to create a 12-month physician fellowship in palliative medicine. The program reflected the organization’s effort to develop palliative-care expertise beyond its direct patient services. Pediatric care became another major area of development. In 2000, Community Hospice collaborated with Wolfson Children’s Hospital, Nemours Children’s Clinic, and the University of Florida to create Community PedsCare. The program offered individualized hospice and palliative support to children with life-limiting or life-threatening illnesses and to their families. Its work was recognized in 2008 with the Quality in Palliative Care Leadership Award. That same year, the Halloween Doors & More fundraiser generated more than $440,000 for the pediatric program and helped it expand its reach. The Community Hospice Foundation was established in 2000 to support end-of-life care and education through individual and corporate donations, planned gifts, estate gifts, and special events. Fundraising activities also included Tree of Life, remembrance services, bingo nights, and the Community Hospice Thrift Shop. The Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance was identified as a major outside fundraising partner, with cumulative donations exceeding $1.5 million since 1998 according to the supplied historical material. The organization developed several specialized community initiatives. It received a $70,000 grant for a homicide-survivor program operated with the Duval County Medical Examiner’s Office, providing grief and loss counseling to families of homicide victims. It was also recognized by Aging with Dignity in 2006 as the largest single U.S. distributor of the Five Wishes living-will document at that time, distributing 358,000 copies across Baker, Clay, Duval, Nassau, and St. Johns counties. Community Hospice briefly operated across the Florida-Georgia border after merging with Hospice of Southeast Georgia in 1994. The resulting Community Hospice of Southeast Georgia served several southeast Georgia counties. Because of limited patient volume and overlap with Hospice of the Golden Isles, the Georgia organization stopped accepting patients in late 2001 after reporting a loss in fiscal year 2000. The supplied sources do not establish the organization’s current executive team, present financial condition, or exact contemporary service footprint.
- 2011
Bailey Family Center for Caring opens
[1]A 12-bed inpatient center opens at Flagler Hospital in St. Augustine.
- 2008
Pediatric program receives quality award
[1]Community PedsCare receives the Quality in Palliative Care Leadership Award.
- 2006
Five Wishes distribution recognized
[1]Aging with Dignity names Community Hospice a National Innovator after the organization distributes 358,000 Five Wishes documents.
- 2004
Palliative-medicine fellowship begins
[1]The Neviaser Educational Institute and Mayo Clinic Jacksonville establish a 12-month physician fellowship in palliative medicine.
- 2000
Community Hospice Foundation and Community PedsCare are established
[1]The foundation begins supporting care and education, while Community PedsCare launches with regional pediatric healthcare partners.
- 1994
Georgia expansion through merger
[1]Community Hospice merges with Hospice of Southeast Georgia, creating Community Hospice of Southeast Georgia.
- 1985
First Center for Caring opens
[1]The Earl B. Hadlow Center for Caring opens in Mandarin as the organization’s first residential facility.
- 1983
Florida license and Medicare certification
[1]Community Hospice receives its state hospice license and Medicare certification.
- 1979
Community Hospice is founded
[1]Nurses, minister Paul Richard Brenner, and volunteers establish a hospice program serving the Jacksonville area.
Products and positioning
Not-for-profit hospice and palliative-care provider emphasizing comprehensive regional access, family support, pediatric services, professional education, and community-funded care.
End-of-life healthcare · 1979
Hospice care
Community Hospice’s core service supports people with terminal illnesses through interdisciplinary care, symptom management, family support, and services delivered across homes, facilities, hospitals, and dedicated inpatient settings.
Pediatric palliative and hospice care · 2000
Community PedsCare
Established in 2000 with Wolfson Children’s Hospital, Nemours Children’s Clinic, and the University of Florida, Community PedsCare provides individualized palliative and hospice support for children with life-limiting or life-threatening conditions and their families.
Inpatient hospice care · 1985
Centers for Caring
The Centers for Caring are dedicated inpatient facilities or hospital-based units for patients whose symptoms require short-term or residential management that cannot be provided effectively in another setting.
Healthcare education
Neviaser Educational Institute
The institute provides education for medical professionals and the public on pain management, the dying process, grief, advance directives, ethics, and palliative medicine. It also participated in physician fellowship training.
Counseling and family support
Bereavement and homicide-survivor support
Community Hospice has provided grief, loss, and bereavement services for families, including a grant-supported pilot program for relatives of homicide victims in cooperation with the Duval County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Marketing campaigns
- 2008Halloween Doors & More
Greater Jacksonville area
A community fundraising event supporting Community PedsCare attracted approximately 1,600 attendees and raised more than $440,000.
Outcome. The proceeds supported an expansion of the pediatric program and helped it serve more than 100 local children and their families.
- 2008Tree of Life
Greater Jacksonville area
The annual Tree of Life observance decorated the organization’s grounds and incorporated a candlelight remembrance service for people who had died.
Outcome. The event served as both a memorial activity and a community fundraising and engagement initiative.
- 1998Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance fundraising partnership
Northeast Florida
The Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance directed proceeds to Community Hospice & Palliative Care over an extended period.
Outcome. The supplied historical material reports cumulative donations of more than $1.5 million since 1998.
Brand decisions
1994
Merger with Hospice of Southeast GeorgiaM&ABackground
Community Hospice expanded beyond Florida through a merger with Hospice of Southeast Georgia.
Action taken
The combined organization operated as Community Hospice of Southeast Georgia and served several southeast Georgia counties.
Aftermath
The Georgia operation stopped accepting patients in late 2001 because of limited patient volume, market overlap, and financial losses.
Fiscal-year loss reported for the Georgia operation. $200,000 loss (Fiscal year 2000)
- Hospice of the Golden Isles — The organization’s growth created overlapping service areas and contributed to the decision to end the Georgia operation’s patient intake.
Sources2 sources
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/community-hospice-of-northeast-florida · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled