The Nipissing Serenity Hospice fundraising committee is over the halfway mark in raising what’s needed for a hospice in North Bay.

Nipissing MPP Vic Fedeli and his wife Patty stepped up to the plate on Friday with a $150,000 donation.

” If I can lend my voice to the hospice is one thing. But opening our wallets to the hospice is something we really need all the community to do.”

That brings the total to $3.2 million.

Fundraising spokesperson Dave Mendicino says they need to raise $6 million and they’ve got funding requests in to both the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care and the NOHFC for most of the remaining funds.

He says many of the board members have been impacted personally by the need for a hospice and he’s no different.

He saw first hand with his mothers death last year.

“A hospice is what’s needed here in the city. It would have been a lot better for the family. Let’s face it a hospital bed is for an acute care patient.”

Fedeli says hospice board members all have a face in front of them as someone they’re thinking of when they ask for community contributions.