UPDATES
Our CEO has been named the U.P.'s Most Remarkable Woman!
Beacon House: A Shining Ray of Light
NMU Center For Rural Health — September 09, 2023 –
There are sixteen hospitals in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, but only one is a Level II Trauma American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma (ACS) verified Trauma Center-U.P. Health System-Marquette. According to the American Trauma Society, Elements of Level II.
Trauma Centers Include:
- 24-hour immediate coverage by general surgeons, as well as coverage by the specialties of orthopedic surgery, neurosurgery, anesthesiology, emergency medicine, radiology and critical care;
- Tertiary care needs such as cardiac surgery, hemodialysis and microvascular surgery may be referred to a Level I Trauma Center;
- Provides trauma prevention and continuing education programs for staff;
- Incorporates a comprehensive quality assessment program.
As a result, many people travel to Marquette, MI, to receive services, treatments, and specialty care……
Remarkable Women of the Upper Peninsula Finalist: Sue LeGalley
Marquette, MI— March 7, 2022 (WJMN) – The Webster’s Dictionary defines Remarkable as an adjective, meaning worthy of being or likely to be noticed, especially as being uncommon, or extraordinary.
A designation that truly represents Sue LeGalley. Her interest in improving the lives of Upper Peninsula residents is sincere, and genuine, and comes from a place of utter humility. Her impact on our community is immeasurable. She is one of the invaluable, driving forces behind the YMCA of Marquette County, Lake Superior Life Care & Hospice, and the Mariucci Family Beacon House, to name a few. One of her most ardent followers, friend, and co-worker is Mary Tavernini Dowling.
MARIUCCI FAMILY BEACON HOUSE EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS
Medical Patients and Families from Every U.P. County Served Since Opening
Marquette, MI— April 9, 2022 — Three months ago, the new Mariucci Family Beacon House opened its doors, and was immediately at full occupancy. Since then, hundreds of guests who have had a loved one in the hospital have come through the doors and appreciated the unique hospitality the organization offers.
“Our dream has come true, and we are doing precisely what we had hoped to do after all these years of planning,” said Mary Tavernini Dowling, CEO of the Hospitality House of the Upper Peninsula. “Every one of our 22 guest rooms has offered a good night sleep to people who have traveled across the U.P. and beyond to be with a loved one in a critical medical situation, or who are coming for life saving treatment for themselves. The response to our welcoming home has been overwhelmingly positive, and everyone appreciates the extra comforts we are so pleased to offer.”
Since opening the doors on January 3 this year, Beacon House has provided over 2,000 overnight stays. Some of the guests stayed while a loved one had surgery and went home the next day, while others called the Beacon House home for nearly two months.
“At one point we had 3 different families staying with us to be near family members who had been in snowmobile accidents,” said Dowling. “We were astounded by the outpouring of love and support offered for these different families by their communities back home. All three accident victims were from outside the U.P., including a young man from Mexico, another from downstate Michigan and another from Kansas. They all had loved ones at their side around the clock during the most critical times when the outcomes were uncertain. We are in awe of the level of intensive care that our UP Health System medical professionals provide and that all three of these patients pulled through, thanks to the outstanding care and expertise offered here.”
The Mariucci Family Beacon House provided these 3 families and their extended families with 9 of their 22 guest rooms, along with 24-hour support for their comfort needs. The hospitality team focuses on the guests’ comfort, making sure they have hot meals, quiet places to read, rest and refresh, someone to talk to about their concerns, a chapel and reflection room for spiritual support and uplifting distractions like puzzles and board games.
Other guests of Beacon House in the first three months included over 500 nights spent by patients undergoing cancer treatment, 130 nights for cardiac patient family members, 155 for neurology, spine and orthopedic surgery guests and families as well as 90 nights for parents of prematurely born babies in the NICU. In many of these instances, these families would not have been able to afford to be with their loved ones or receive the care for these extended periods of time. Beacon House is a donation-based operation, and simply asks the guests to donate what they can at the best level they can afford.
Beacon House has been in operation since 2002, has provided close to 350,000 overnight stays to those in medical crisis, saving them over $65 million dollars in meals and lodging expenses that many could not otherwise afford.
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Attachments:
Photo 1: Steve Mariucci with accident victim Adrian Urbina from Mexico, along with his father Carlos and CEO Mary Tavernini Dowling
Photo 2: Cancer Patient Laurie Wareham from South Range, Michigan with volunteer stylist Heidi Hurrell in the Beacon House Wig Salon, custom styling a complimentary new wig.
The Steve Mariucci Family Beacon House is a 501c3 non profit organization, located at 200 S. Seventh Street, Marquette, Michigan.
Contact Mary Tavernini Dowling at 906-360-6000, or email mary@upbeaconhouse.org. www.upbeaconhouse.org
Beacon House Celebrates Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for New Steve Mariucci Beacon House
December 15, 2021
MARQUETTE – The Lake Superior Community Partnership (LSCP) recently joined Beacon House to celebrate the completion of the new Steve Mariucci Beacon House.
“I am proud and humbled to dedicate this beautiful new Hospital Hospitality House to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan,” said Steve Mariucci, a native of Iron Mountain and NFL Network Analyst currently residing in California. “I will always call the U.P. “home” and am so pleased to be part of providing a “home away from home” for patients and families in a medical crisis.”
Beacon House has played a crucial role in providing access to specialty medical care to families in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (the U.P.) for over 30 years. The mission of the Beacon House has been to provide compassionate and supportive services with a safe and affordable place to stay for patients, families, loved ones and caregivers in times of medical crisis when home is too far away. Beacon House is a donation-based organization that strives to serve all those in need with dignity and respect without regard to their financial situation.
“Today is the celebration of the house that love built,” said Mary Tavernini Dowling, CEO. “Thousands of people from across the U.P. and across the country donated what they could afford to help us build a place for people to stay close to the hospital, regardless of what they can afford. I’m overwhelmed by the love and support we’ve received to help us accomplish this amazing goal.”
Beacon House was established in 1990 with the original four-bedroom home near the hospital. In 1994, a second home was added to accommodate even more guests. In 2002 The Beacon House volunteer group created a 501c3 non-profit organization with a diverse board of directors. After acquiring a bank loan, Beacon House purchased a small hotel near the hospital to continue its mission to care for those in need. In 2013, it expanded its services to include managing 21 beds in a small section of the hospital for outpatients who had difficulty traveling back and forth to the hospital from Beacon House during cancer treatments and other critical medical issues.
In 2014, the hospital announced the construction of a new hospital and the closure of the old hospital. The Beacon House board of directors began mapping out a strategy to sell the Beacon House building and launch a capital campaign to raise funds to build a new hospitality house next to the new hospital.
Land next to the new location of UPHS – Marquette was designated for the new location in the summer of 2017, and the Capital Campaign ‘Legacy of Love’ was launched to raise funds for the construction of a new Beacon House. The Beacon House location on Third Street was sold in the spring of 2019, and “Operation Overnight” was created to continue to assist patients and families with affordable lodging options in the interim.
On August 21, 2020 Steve and Gayle Mariucci provided the first shovel of dirt in the groundbreaking ceremony on the new property next to the new hospital. Shortly after, construction work began to prepare the site for development of the Steve Mariucci Beacon House. Construction will be completed by the end of December 2021, and their hospitality team will welcome the first guests to stay on January 3, 2022.
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For more information, contact the Lake Superior Community Partnership at (906) 226-6591. Prepared by Megan O’Connor.
The Lake Superior Community Partnership (LSCP) is the region’s leading resource for economic development, providing a wide variety of affordable and effective development services. The LSCP helps our partners make the connections that matter – between businesses, organizations, leaders and legislators, and provides a powerful legislative voice for programs and policies that strengthen our regional economy. More information on the Lake Superior Community Partnership can be found at www.marquette.org.
CONSTRUCTION RESUMES ON NEW STEVE MARIUCCI FAMILY BEACON HOUSE
Marquette Hospitality House on Track for Grand Opening by Christmas
MARQUETTE, Mich. — Construction on the Steve Mariucci Family Beacon House resumed April 5 after a short pause for winter. Located next to the UP Health System – Marquette hospital (UPHS), the new Beacon House will provide a “home away from home” for patients and families from across the Upper Peninsula seeking medical care in Marquette. Site work on the 27,000-square-foot, two-story facility began in August 2020 with a target grand opening celebration by Christmas 2021.
Currently in the second phase of construction, the Mariucci Family Beacon House has been thoughtfully designed with patients’ and their family’s needs in mind. More than just an affordable place to stay, Beacon House will cater to guests’ physical, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing by offering additional services and spaces including:
- 20 private Guest Rooms that promote comfort and healing
- Two Overnight Support Suites for extended stays
- A dedicated Cancer Guest Wing to offer extra safety and peace of mind to cancer patients
- A Meeting and Conference Room to consult with medical providers and family members
- A Community Kitchen to prepare affordable, healthy meals and foster a sense of community
- A Guest TV Lounge to relax and make lasting connections
- A peaceful Outdoor Gathering Space with access to bike paths
Furthermore, the new Beacon House’s close proximity to Marquette’s regional hospital offers guests improved access to medical care and removes any financial barriers or fears of being far from home without support. For many U.P. residents seeking treatment for cancer, heart disease, and other specialty care, UPHS is their only option.
“We have been working around the clock to make our new Beacon House a reality since the hospital announced their plans to move,” said Mary Tavernini Dowling, CEO of the Hospitality House of the Upper Peninsula. “We have overcome many hurdles with acquiring the new property, raising funds for construction, and navigating the pandemic, all while still providing support to patients and families experiencing medical crises through our Operation Overnight program. Now, we are facing down our last challenge: raising the final funds to help us make it home.”
Beacon House reached its first fundraising goal of $3 million last summer, and an additional $1 million since then, but there is still progress to be made. The organization encourages more U.P. businesses, organizations, and individuals to pledge or donate to help raise the additional $1.5 million needed to complete the project, due to cost changes mostly resulting from COVID-related supply and demand issues. Beacon House offers multiple options to show support, including named opportunities in the new facility, the Adopt-A-Day program to honor a loved one, and one-time or recurring donations.
“We all hope we or a loved one never get sick or need emergency medical attention, but it happens every day. If we have learned anything over the past year, it’s that the U.P. comes together during times of crisis,” said Steve Mariucci. “Beacon House provides a nurturing, home-like environment and allows guests to focus on healing while receiving critical care. My family and I look forward to opening the new Beacon House and giving the entire U.P. the best present of all this Christmas: one less worry.”
Additional information about the new facility and how to support Beacon House can be found at upbeaconhouse.org.
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Press Contact
For more information on the Steve Mariucci Family Beacon House, please contact Mary Tavernini Dowling at 906-360-6000 or mary@upbeaonhouse.org.
Steve Mariucci Family Beacon House
The Steve Mariucci Family Beacon House becomes a “home away from home” for patients and families that travel across the Upper Peninsula to receive speciality medical care at the UP Health System – Marquette hospital. Offering compassionate, empathetic, and supportive care, Beacon House ensures that families in a medical crisis never have to ask, “Where am I going to stay and how am I going to afford it?”
The original Beacon House and Hospitality Rooms provided over 325,000 overnight stays to families and loved ones in the hospital, as well as cancer patients undergoing radiation and chemotherapy treatments. Over the past 18 years, Beacon House has saved U.P. families an estimated $65 million in lodging and meals. While the average stay is 3.5 nights, the longest stay was 337 nights. Beacon House has been a home away from home for residents of all 15 counties in the U.P., as well as loved ones of patients from every state in the U.S. and six countries around the world.
Beacon House is a private, nonprofit, donation-based organization.
August 21, 2020
STEVE MARIUCCI FAMILY BEACON HOUSE BREAKS GROUND TO BEGIN CONSTRUCTION
FUNDRAISING STILL UNDERWAY TO COMPLETE THE PROJECT
Marquette, MI: The Steve Mariucci Family Beacon House broke ground recently to mark the start of the construction for the $5.4 million Hospitality House of the Upper Peninsula (HHUP) on the newly acquired land next to the UP Health System-Marquette hospital (UPHS), with Steve and Gayle Mariucci performing the honors with the first shovel in the ground. The new Beacon House will be a 20-guest room, two story facility with approximately 27,000 square feet.
“Today marked the beginning of a new journey to help our U.P. neighbors in times of medical crisis,” said Steve Mariucci. “This new Beacon House is going to be a home away from home for patients and families for many years to come, and my family is very proud to be a part of something so supportive and enduring.”
Leading the groundbreaking ceremony along with the Mariucci’s was HHUP CEO Mary Tavernini Dowling, HHUP Board Vice President Sue LeGalley, UPHS CEO Gar Atchison, City Manager Mike Angeli, Lake Superior Community Partnership CEO Amy Clickner, Brownfield Authority Chairman David Allen, State Representative Sara Cambensy, and former guests of Beacon House Tom and Kelly Reynolds.
Site work will begin on August 24, 2020 to prepare for the new construction, will continue through the construction season and begin again with the spring thaw in 2021. During the interim, the campaign will continue to raise the additional $2 million needed to complete the project, with a goal of hosting a Grand Opening celebration in time for Christmas of 2021. The organization just recently reached the first fundraising goal of $3 million dollars, and is encouraging more U.P. businesses, individuals and organizations to pledge or donate to the campaign.
Closner Construction & Sales has been awarded the General Contractor bid for the construction of the project, designed by Dax Richer and Jason Gautier of RG Design, with Brian Savolainen as Civil Engineer. JP Electric and Dresseler Mechanical Inc. are subcontracting the electric, mechanical and plumbing work and Oberstar Inc. has been awarded the site contracting.
“We often say that in the U.P. being a neighbor has nothing to do with your address, it has everything to do with how we look out for each other in times of need,” remarked Steve Mariucci. “We have so many people to thank for helping us reach this first goal. People across the UP have proven to be the most incredible neighbors. Their donations are helping us to build the house where medical patients and families will find comfort and a safe affordable place to get some rest.”
The first $3 million fundraising goal will provide the funds for more than half of the project.
“We are so excited to get this construction started,” said Mary Tavernini Dowling, CEO. “We have put in a tremendous amount of effort to get to this celebratory day. Every inch of this design is purposeful and developed with the medical patient and family’s needs in mind, from the special cancer wing and wig salon for cancer patients to the well laid-out community kitchen, outdoor porches and deck. We have the funds to get started and the next leg of our fundraising will help us make it home.”
