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    • Home
    • THE HOUSE
    • ABOUT US
    • ENGAGE
    • DONATE
    • NEWS & PRESS
    • CONTACT US
  • Home
  • THE HOUSE
  • ABOUT US
  • ENGAGE
  • DONATE
  • NEWS & PRESS
  • CONTACT US

About Us

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Who Is Friends Of Hopewell House

When Legacy announced the closure of Hopewell House, the community 

immediately responded with the formation of Friends of Hopewell House (FHH), 

a newly recognized 501(c)(3) charitable non-profit organization. 


We are a diverse group that includes accomplished hospice pioneers, 

business professionals, former staff members (doctors, nurses, chaplains) and 

volunteers, community leaders, development professionals, journalists, and 

family members who have experienced the death of a loved one at the house.


Our working group of 20 committed volunteers has met every Saturday morning 

since October 2019. With over 10,000 deaths at Hopewell House – nearly one death 

per day for 33 years – and each death touching many other people, much of 

Portland has a direct connection or second-degree story about the House, 

extending our reach into a vast and passionate community.


Friends of Hopewell House is led by a long-time hospice advocate, Joan Strong Buell.

Our President

joane buell

Joan Buell

A pioneer in end-of-life care, Joan was instrumental in bringing the British model of inpatient hospice care to the U.S. She also helped craft Oregon’s state policies around hospice care. “I had worked in an inpatient hospice facility in England and learned not everyone can be home or wants to be home,” she says. “I was interested in the problems and solutions for people dying.”

A retired teacher of human development, musician, botanist, reader, Joan is a happy member of a family ranging from 1-93 years in age. 

Legacy’s decision to close Hopewell House inspired Joan to rededicate herself, leading the way for this special resource she founded to continue serving those in need. Joan, currently 87 years of age, is the spirited President of our non-profit, Friends of Hopewell House.

Board Members

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Sarah Newhall

Peter Schubert

Sarah Newhall

Vice President

Former President and CEO of Pact, Inc. a global non-profit development organization. Former Director of the Office of Neighborhood Associations. Organizational development consultant. 

john larkin

John Larkin

Peter Schubert

Sarah Newhall

Treasurer 

30 year global finance executive at Kimberly-Clark. MBA Tuck School of Business and CPA. Longtime Hopewell House volunteer

peter schubert

Peter Schubert

Peter Schubert

Scott MacEachern

Secretary

Business systems analyst with decades of experience in financial operations and information technologies. Hospice care advocate for over 30 years.

scott maceachern

Scott MacEachern

Scott MacEachern

Scott MacEachern

 FHH Executive Director 

Brand Executive. Architect of Global Nike-Livestrong Movement, Hopewell House volunteer. MDiv Candidate, Maitripa College.

eric walsh md hopewell house

Dr. Eric Walsh

Scott MacEachern

Christine Pavlyk

Former Hospice Director at Housecall Providers, Hospice Medical Director at Bronx Hospice Visiting Nurse Service of New York, and Professor of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Medical Oncology, OHSU

christine pavlyk

Christine Pavlyk

Scott MacEachern

Christine Pavlyk

Senior Intellectual Property Paralegal at Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt. Previous board member, treasurer, finance chair, Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art in Chicago. 

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Connie Larkin

Marci Donaldson

Marci Donaldson

Longtime Hopewell House volunteer. Global women’s health advocate.

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Marci Donaldson

Marci Donaldson

Marci Donaldson

 Graduate Johns Hopkins School of Nursing. Longtime hospice nurse, educator and volunteer.  

Stefan Clayton hopewell house

Stefan Clayton

Marci Donaldson

Stefan Clayton

Stefan’s wife Julie died at Hopewell House in September 2019. Business owner, artist, consultant, and Neuro-Linguistic Master Practitioner  

John Callahan Portland

John Callahan

Carla Starrett-Bigg

Stefan Clayton

 Odell Professor of Humanities at Lewis and Clark College until retiring in 2015.  He has edited six posthumous editions of the late Ralph's Ellison's work.  He is also Literary Executor for the estate of Ralph Ellison, author of Invisible Man, and a trustee of the Ellison Trust.

carla starrett bigg

Carla Starrett-Bigg

Carla Starrett-Bigg

Carla Starrett-Bigg

Former Development Director for Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon. Former journalist and freelance writer. Longtime hospice advocate and advisory board member. 

Virny Maxam

Virny Maxam

Carla Starrett-Bigg

Carla Starrett-Bigg

Hospice volunteer for 24 years. Former paralegal, teacher and education union officer.

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Dr. Keesha Ewers

Dr. Keesha Ewers, PhD, ARNP is board certified in Ayurvedic and Functional medicine, psychotherapist, Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner in integrative medicine, a certified Conscious Dying Doula, an initiated Huachumera, and the founder and medical director of the Academy for Integrative Medicine.

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 6164 SW Capitol Highway, Portland, OR 97239 


Website by WHCo.


Living Well in The Presence of Death