Our History

On April 1, 2004, Bayview Community Hospice and CommunityCARE Home Hospice, in their 15th and 14th years of operation respectively, merged together to form one non-profit organization. The hospice is governed by a board of directors and supported by almost a hundred volunteers.

On October 11, 2006, Bayview Community Hospice officially changed its name to Alliance Hospice.

2006 was a landmark year for the hospice and our re-branding is the culmination of the merger that brought together Bayview Community Hospice and CommunityCARE Home Hospice, each with distinct cultures and philosophies of care and each serving specific geographies within the city. We completed the last of five strategic directions established when the two hospices merged in 2004 and we received our Level II Accreditation from the Hospice Association of Ontario. We expanded the scope of our services through new partnerships and collaborations with other hospices and community based agencies. Our most significant achievement was to support 349 clients with 15,090 hours of direct services, an increase of 20% over the previous year.

Our new name does not signal a change in the long standing, high level of service provided by Bayview Community Hospice or CommunityCARE Home Hospice. Rather, it reflects our philosophy of care and the priority that we place on service integration, partnerships and collaborations. Our tag line Partners in Care emphasis how we view our role with our clients, their families, our community partners, and our professional partners.

The development of our new name and logo was in itself, a collaborative process. We retained Duegood Social Marketing to see input from our stakeholders—clients, families, volunteers, staff and board, referral sources, other hospices, partners, and community agencies. Over the summer Duegood developed a number of concepts that were shared with staff, board, and volunteers. After a few iterations, a final name, logo, and tag line were selected. These were shared with a select group of volunteers, referral sources, and community partners for their feedback—all of which was positive. We had found a brand that really represented what the hospice was all about.

As we go forward, we look forward to working with all of our partners to provide compassionate and meaningful care to our clients and their families while doing our part to transform hospice care in Toronto into a highly integrated community based service.

The History of Bayview Community Hospice
The movement to found Bayview Community Hospice began in 1988. A steering committee was formed in January 1988 at the urging of bereavement counsellor Pauline Faull. Ms. Faull had worked as a nurse in Ireland where the hospice movement is more highly developed. The first board meeting was held in September 1989 with Doreen Thibert as the Chair. The first volunteer training took place the following month. Bayview Community Hospice was incorporated as a charitable organization in 1990. Bayview's traditional service territory was from St. Clair Avenue north to Steeles Avenue, from Victoria Park Avenue west to the Humber River.

The History of CommunityCARE Home Hospice
CommunityCARE Home Hospice has been providing service to clients in the greater Toronto area for 14 years. Founded in 1990 as AIDSCare by Metropolitan Community Church of Toronto, the hospice focused exclusively on services for people with AIDS. In 1997, the services of CommunityCARE were expanded to encompass all life threatening illnesses. Since its inception, CommunityCARE has served over 1200 people. CommunityCARE's traditional service territory was from St. Clair Avenue south to Lake Ontario, from Victoria Park Avenue west to the Humber River.