Timeline

1990
First Beacon House

Four-bedroom home becomes the first Beacon House

1994
Second Home Added

Second small home added to support more patients

2002
Village Inn Purchased

Homes replaced as Village Inn purchased and converted to 36-room Beacon House

2011
Mariucci Foundation Celebrity Golf Fundraiser

Mariucci Foundation sponsors first Celebrity Golf Fundraiser to support operations

2013
Beacon House Begins Managing Hospital Hospitality Rooms

Beacon House takes over management of the Hospital Hospitality Rooms at the former MGH, along with Gift Shop and Coffee Shops

2014
Relocation Becomes Necessary

Hospital announces plans to build new hospital, 15 blocks away, and plans do not include hospitality rooms for outpatient or families, making Beacon House relocation an essential need

2016
Capital Campaign Launched

Beacon House launches Capital Campaign to acquire land near new hospital and build new facility

2017
Land Donated For New Beacon House

Hospital donates land for new Beacon House at the Celebrity Golf Event

2020
Groundbreaking Ceremony For New Beacon House

Mariucci and Board of Directors host Groundbreaking Ceremony and construction on the new 27,000 square foot facility begins

2021
Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

Ribbon Cutting Ceremony on new Beacon House hosted by the Mariucci Family

2022
Steve Mariucci Family Beacon House Opens

Doors open on the new Steve Mariucci Family Beacon House

Our Story

On a winter day in 1989, a prominent Marquette Cardiologist drove through the hospital parking lot and saw one of his patients in a pickup truck. The man was wrapped in a sleeping bag, and was shaving his face in the side view mirror. The Cardiologist later learned that his patient lived in a small town several hours away, and could not afford a hotel when he came to the hospital for his follow up care from his heart surgery, and would sleep in his car, even in sub-zero temperatures. Upon further investigation, it was discovered that this was not a unique situation. It appeared that many types of medical patients seeking specialty medical care from outside the area would frequently sleep in their cars, bathe in the public restrooms and snack on whatever was available in the hospital coffee lounges. Soon thereafter, physicians and volunteers would come together to create a plan to convert a small house next to the hospital for these types of patients, and offer the overnight accommodations at whatever donation level the patient could best afford. The first “Beacon House” in Marquette, Michigan was launched.

Beacon House has since 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. From the start, the mission has been to provide compassionate and supportive services with a safe, 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, and strives to serve all those in need with dignity and respect, and without judgment, ensuring that no guest ever feels unwelcome due to income or financial situation. 

Beacon House was established in 1990 with the original four-bedroom home near the hospital and in 1994, a second home was added to accommodate even more guests. In 2002, the hospital announced it would be demolishing the homes to create more parking space. The volunteer group efficiently created a 501c3 non-profit organization with a diverse board of directors, and with a bank loan, 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 was sold to a for-profit organization who announced that they would be building a new hospital in a different section of town and closing the old hospital once it was built. They also announced that the new hospital would not have room for any hospitality rooms. The Beacon House board of directors then began mapping out a strategy to sell the Beacon House building and launch a capital campaign to raise the funds to build a new hospitality house next to the new hospital.

The original Beacon House, located on College Avenue, opened in 1990 after the Marquette General Hospital Auxiliary recognized a need for those radiation and oncology patients who lived too far away to commute for their treatments in Marquette. Soon after a second home, the Hospitality House, opened its doors to accommodate the family members of Marquette General Health System patients.

When the hospital determined the need for more parking space, the two small houses were slated to be torn down. In September 2001, the volunteer group formed a board of directors, filed for a 501c3 independent, non-profit status and set out to purchase The Village Inn, and nearby hotel that was for sale at the time. After much consideration, a loan was granted and the Beacon House at 1301 N. Third Street in Marquette began operating the donation based hospitality house with 35 guest rooms, a community kitchen, children’s play room and a guest lounge.

On January 1, 2014, Beacon House also began operating the 11 hospitality rooms with 22 beds at the hospital. These programs work in conjunction with patient and family needs for proximity to the hospital and services.

When the new owners of the hospital, Duke LifePoint, announced their plans to build a new hospital on the other side of town, the board of directors began researching the opportunity to build a new Beacon 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 Friday, 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! The following Monday, the first construction work began to prepare the site for development. In the spring of 2021, the building will begin and a grand opening should take place by the end of the year.