Joplin Realtor recognized for charitable effort on behalf of Solace House

Feb. 27—A local real estate agent and member of the Ozark Gateway Association of Realtors has been recognized by the state organization for her support of Solace House of the Ozarks.

Lana Nelson won the Good Neighbor Award recently presented at the annual meeting of the Missouri Association of Realtors. The recognition came with a $1,000 donation to Solace House.

"The Missouri Association of Realtors is always on the watch to compliment an agent in Missouri for their community service," Nelson said.

Solace House is a place where people stay during their last month of life to receive around-the-clock care. It was established in Joplin by several area people who saw a need for a comfortable place where people who do not need to be in a hospital could be cared for at no cost. They received support from the local medical community, although Solace House is not a medical facility. It provides relief to family members who are often the main source of home care.

"The dying in our community are faced with a lot of decisions. It's very expensive," to obtain end-of-life care, said Mona Elston, house operations manager for Solace House. "Solace House saw a big, big need for that."

She said the house is considered an extension of home and family, providing caring volunteers and staff to rally around a person who is reaching their last days. There are 34 trained volunteers now and the goal this year is to bring that number to 50. There have been 152 people who received care before dying since Solace House opened in 2020.

No bills are sent and no insurance is charged for a person's stay.

"We don't take Medicare or Medicaid," said another co-founder, Susan Lincoln. "It's strictly funded by donations of those in the Joplin region."

Solace House is operated as a social model of care, part of the national nonprofit Omega Home Network. That means "that the community owns Solace House and supports it" rather than investors or a health care institution, Lincoln said.

A leader of the effort is Sandy Hughes, of Stella, who based the vision on the Clarehouse, a Tulsa, Oklahoma, nonprofit offering end-of-life care. She was joined in the effort by co-founders Lincoln and Leisa Matthews-Springsteen. Nelson has been involved in providing assistance and resources for the operation since the beginning, Lincoln said.

The availability of trained volunteers offering care to a dying patient and their family is a needed service for many.

"There's usually a caregiver crisis at the end," of life for some, Lincoln said. "People are either worn out or there is no caregiver."

Kim Cox, CEO of the local Realtor organization, said the state association has 25,000 members.

"They recognize a top contributor to a community with a Good Neighbor Award of $2,500 for a charity and then give an honorable mention award and a $1,000 donation," Cox said. The honorable mention "is one they feel they can't let go without recognition. It has to be a significant contribution of time, money and other resources. We are grateful for the fact we had a Joplin agent recognized."