EC Wisconsin News

Unity, a nonprofit healthcare provider in Northeast Wisconsin, has received a $30,000 grant from the Otto Bremer Trust. The funding is intended to expand pediatric palliative and hospice care services for children and their families in the region. It will also be used to enhance grief support programs for children and teens affected by loss.

“This generous investment from the Otto Bremer Trust enables us to provide compassionate, family-centered care during the most difficult of life circumstances,” said Alisa Gerke, Executive Director of Unity. “No child should face a serious illness alone, and no family should be left without support during grief. Thanks to this grant, Unity can serve more families with the expertise, tenderness, and commitment they deserve.”

Unity operates as the only local nonprofit in its 14-county service area offering specialized pediatric palliative and hospice care. Its model allows young patients to receive both life-prolonging treatments and home-based visits from an interdisciplinary team trained in pediatric care. Services include access to nurses and social workers at all hours, pain management, emotional support, spiritual care, and resources for families.

The new funding will also support specialized training for staff; provide therapeutic items for patients; fund legacy projects such as voice recordings; supply educational materials; offer counseling groups for children and teens; and extend outreach efforts within schools.

Unity’s grief services are available throughout the community as well as at its standalone Grief and Education Center—the only one of its kind in the region. Licensed counselors deliver individual sessions using therapeutic tools tailored to children's developmental stages. In the past year, 32 children aged 4–18 received individual counseling at this center.

Through its Generations program supporting grieving families together, 15 families with 22 children participated last year in sessions designed around shared meals followed by peer-based group activities.

School-based programs aim to reduce barriers by supporting students where they learn. Last year these initiatives reached 185 students across 12 schools while professional trainings served an additional 522 students and staff members.

The Otto Bremer Trust focuses on strengthening communities with an emphasis on children's health services—a mission that aligns with Unity's goals. More information about Unity’s programs is available at https://unityhospice.org/.