MCHCD, Adventist Health, And The Future Of Fort Bragg’s Hospice Thrift Store

There’s an interesting struggle playing out within the Mendocino Coast Health Care District Board of Directors around the subject of the Hospice Thrift Store in Fort Bragg. As part of the affiliation with Adventist Health in 2020, the control of the thrift store fell under the purview of Adventist Health.

Let’s just tell the tale in the words of the participants.

On May 9, MCHCD Board member Paul Katzeff sent out the following message to his constituents:

“Today, May 9th, is my 864th day serving on the board of the Mendocino Coast Healthcare District. I want to thank you for voting for me in the 2024 election. I was informed by the governor’s office that I was the oldest elected official in the California 2024 election cycle. (87 years old.)

In The Works:

Currently, I am working on our community’s hospice thrift store situation. It’s in the Boatyard Shopping Center west of David’s deli. Here’s what’s happening:

• Adventist Health inherited the store when it took responsibility for our hospitals, patient care.
• Adventist Health has asked the MCHCD to take possession of the store.
• The MCHCD board has not agreed to this plan and has set up an ad hoc committee to investigate options other than MCHCD ownership, supervision, plus oversight.
• Susan Savage and I are members of that ad hoc committee.
• The hospice store is a viable business, profitable and self-supporting.
• The store is also the facility that warehouses used prosthetic devices that are recycled to needy patients in our community. This is a service organized and overseen by Friends of Health (board chair, Cynthia Wall)

There is a belief among those of us who have met to discuss this “Hospice” in name only thrift store, that it can be the seed for a greater center focused on elder advocacy, which now is needed more than ever in our community as the 60s and 70s hippies plus plus artists are now, 50 years later in their 70s and 80s, often living alone on the ridges in homes that they’ve raised families in, but now require more fireplace wood than they can carry or are suffering from isolation, depression, and having given up their cars, driving no more, and are lonely and socially isolated.

Adding to that stress, the County building department is red-tagging homes, causing code upgrades, and harassing a generation of our community that needs “advocacy.” It has been suggested that the hospice store can be a place where volunteers can be organized to help our elders who need help.”

Katzeff’s message concluded with a notice about an upcoming get together: “On May 28th, a meeting of the interested parties will take place.

Time: 4 pm

Location:303 W. Redwood St. Downtown Fort Bragg

Upstairs in the Company Store; north west corner of the building across from Cafe Dijon.”

On May 20 Katzeff sent this email to Jeff Mock, Chief Financial Officer for Adventist Health in Mendocino County:

“As a result of AH Lease negotiations [in the fall of 2024] we have been looking for a solution. If you have one, come to the meeting and tell us about it. There are two attachments that can get you up to speed.”

About an hour later, Mock responded, citing a conversation involving Paul Garza, MCHCD Board Chair:

“To best serve our community, I propose a collaborative communication regarding the future of the Hospice Thrift Store, as both Adventist Health (AH) and the District have independently decided to discontinue its operation.

For clarity, in Q3 2024, our team discussed the Thrift Store’s future with the District, noting that AH’s expertise lies in healthcare rather than thrift store operations. Consequently, the District requested time to evaluate assuming operations, and AH committed to providing financial support and resources for existing staff through Q2 2025. Subsequently, the District informed AH of its decision not to operate the Thrift Store.

To ensure a positive message for the community, I believe a joint statement reflecting our mutual decision is ideal. This approach avoids any perception of blame and aligns with our shared goal of fostering positive sentiment, as discussed by Paul Garza at the recent AH Community Board meeting. A unified message will reinforce AH’s and the District’s commitment to enhancing healthcare quality on the coast.

I’ve included our Marketing and Communications Director, Luke McMurray, to assist in crafting this statement. My request is for both parties to collaborate on a communication that acknowledges this decision while emphasizing our focus on improving patient care.

Paul, Kathy, and Paul, do you agree to proceed with a joint community communication? Please let me know your thoughts.”

The “Paul, Kathy, and Paul” comment by Mock appears to reference Paul Garza, Kathy Wylie, and Paul Katzeff. It is interesting in that Mock seems to be placing Wylie, the agency administrator employed by Regional Government Services (RGS) on equal footing as the two elected MCHCD Board members.

Early on May 21, Katzeff answered back:

“Slow down, the timing is June 30 (end Q2) which is enough time to save the resource or morph it into a different resource . The store is self supporting at this time and will be for the next month and it does not require much AH oversight. I was assigned to explore and find options and report back to the MCHCD Board. The Board and I have made it very clear that we are looking for a solution or at best, a transition that serves the community. To that end, I have asked interested organizations and local luminaries to discuss (brainstorm) the issue. There are many, 45 to be exact, non profits who might jump at the chance to enhance their survival by this cash flow operation. How can they step forward if they are not aware? I was elected to solve problems and represent my constituents and more specifically, my demographic. So although my Board would love to wash its hands of this, I believe it would harm its reputation to prematurely issue a statement which I could not, and would not support until I believe all options were identified and explored.

You have to realize that I have lived here 53 years and consider myself a Citizen first and a Board member second, and my responsibility is to my friends who voted for me and expect me to be me and not some “go along to get along” administrator/ Politician. This situation is already in the community’s conversation and I intend to protect the reputation of the MCHCD Board from a hasty declaration with AH. Let’s see what happens first.

Why don’t you come to the Community Meeting on the 28th and speak about AH and why it is needing to end its ownership at this time? I am on your side. You never know what the unknown will bring. It may bring an Angel!”