Greetings!

December has arrived and the spirit of the season feels like it is settling in. Our community is bustling with evenings of Cornish and Victorian Christmas and various other community holiday celebrations. We are waking up to frosty mornings, and the trees are in the final stages of dropping their colorful leaves.  This month always takes on a touch of magic. It’s the time of year that brings families together when possible, and folks start to reflect on all the year has brought them.

As we round out our 46th year of service, we are profoundly grateful for our staff, volunteers, partners and supporters who help keep our mission strong and continue to allow us to do the important work we do.

May this season fill your days with warm wintery sunshine, your nights with peace, and your heart with the gentle magic of December. Here’s to ending 2025 with gratitude, and beginning 2026 with a renewed sense of hope and inspiration. 

Heidi Wingo

Executive Director

Well, the phone call finally came. You know the one—the fateful call that the adult children of elderly parents dread—the one you know is inevitable, but you pray you’ll never get.

On August 2nd, I was notified that my father-in-law had had a significant fall and was in the hospital. During his medical work up, it was discovered that in addition to his long ago-diagnosed COPD, he was also in congestive heart failure and had developed aspiration pneumonia. When we were informed that he was in the ICU and wasn’t responding well to treatment, we knew that we had to step in and help navigate his end-of-life care. Piece of cake for a hospice expert, right? The biggest challenge in all of this (or so I thought) was that he was not here in our local ICU. He was in the ICU at Central Peninsula Hospital in Soldotna, Alaska. We arranged our time off work, booked our flights, and off to Alaska we went.

Carolynn had a deep and sincere belief in the mission of not-for-profit hospice. Between her personal and professional experiences in the 80s with dismal hospice services, she was often a tireless champion and advocate. She truly felt our community deserved the best end of life services possible, and that the collective sacrifice and labor was well worth it. Carolynn also had an unwavering faith in this community’s ability to support our mission- there was no greater cheerleader for Foothills Compassionate Care than her. She will be certainly missed by all who knew her.

Activities, gifts, contests & more for the whole family!

Join us for a FREE community event at the Grass Valley store! Wear your ugly sweater and bring the family for holiday spirit filled day.

10:00am: Event begins

10:30am: Story time

11:00am-2:00pm: Visit & photos with Santa

2:30pm: Ugly sweater contest ends

4:00pm: Event ends

SPONSORED BY:

Toy Drive Kickoff

November 3

In anticipation of Santa's Village on December 20, Foothills Gift & Thrift kicked off its annual toy drive, with collection barrels located throughout Grass Valley.

Moonlight Magic

November 7

We had a wonderful time under the moonlight with community members and professional partners, raising over $100,000 to support end of life care in Nevada County.

Music On Wheels

November 10

Residents of Sierra View Senior Living were treated to a live piano concert from Ken Hardin, as part of our partnership with InConcert Sierra.

Breakfast Club

November 19

We welcomed community partners to network and learn at this meeting hosted at various locations each month. Cozy vibes and breakfast foods were enjoyed by all, along with a reminder to be present with speaker Sonya Dolan of Mettle Health.

Turkey Trot

November 27

Members of Foothills Compassionate Care participated in the MEB II Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day.

Muppet Launch

November 28

Community Outreach Manager Liz was on hand to help celebrate this year's Muppet Launch in the little town of Washington.

Santa's Village

PRESENTED BY FOOTHILLS GIFT & THRIFT
Sponsored by The Lee & Dunn Group

DECEMBER 20

Join us for a FREE community event at the Foothills Gift & Thrift store in Grass Valley. Contests, gifts and more!

How to Care for Caregivers


JANUARY 29

Join us for a special evening of wisdom, reflection, and community with Tibetan Buddhist Monks.

Are You a Legacy Donor?

If you have included Foothills Compassionate Care in your estate plans, we would love the opportunity to thank you, welcome you into our Legacy Circle and ensure your gift is used exactly as you intend.

Please complete our Estate Plan Intention form, so that you may be recognized and recorded.