In a ceremony today, Palolo Chinese Home will receive a $2 million grant from the Clarence T.C. Ching Foundation to help the care home offer more services to seniors at a time when the demand for elder care is soaring.

"The need is really there," said Steven Gilley, the Ching Foundation's executive director.

Early next year, the home will wrap up a six-year, $18 million renovation that quadruples its skilled nursing bed space, adds a state-of-the-art kitchen capable of preparing more meals for residents and the Meals on Wheels program, and offers seniors a range of options as they age, from in-home care or day care to skilled nursing or hospice care.

Once the work is complete, Palolo Chinese Home will embark on a multi-year fundraising effort to convert its old dining hall into a community center and renovate the residential care wing for a more home-like feel.

Darryl Ing, chief executive officer of Palolo Chinese Home, said the Ching Foundation grant can be used for anything at the home, from construction to operating expenses. He said it's not yet decided where the money will be spent. But he said the donation — the largest ever to the home — is greatly appreciated at a time when the facility has emerged as a leader in elder care in the Islands and is seeing more requests for services islandwide.

EXPANDING SERVICES

The care home traces its beginnings to 1896, when Chinese in the Islands established a home "for the aged and infirm" in Palama. Palolo Chinese Home was formally established in 1917, and accepted its first patients — eight elderly Chinese men — three years later.

Today, the home helps about 600 seniors at any one time, most of whom get in-home meal help, referrals or occasional nursing assistance. The facility has 65 full-time residents.

That figure will jump to 111 when a new, three-story building on the campus is completed early next year. The expansion will give the facility 61 nursing home beds, up from just 15. Earlier work expanded the popular daycare program, which has 30 slots, and respite services, and also beefed up in-home services for seniors who can still live independently.

Ing said the new building "will enable us to serve more people."

The main thrust of the expansion is to create a continuum of care that starts with helping the elderly in their own homes. While they're still living independently, seniors have opportunities to take part in day activities or weekend stays at the 15-acre campus in Palolo Valley. Later, residential or respite care is offered for those who need help with daily activities. And lastly, skilled nursing home beds and hospice are available.

Ing said the next step in upgrading the campus is transforming the dining hall into a community center — a renovation that's likely to cost about $500,000. Instead of eating in the dining hall, residents will eat in smaller, more intimate settings, like they would at home.

GETTING HOMIER

Demolishing or refurbishing the 1950s-era care wing, which has 50 dormitory-style beds, will cost between $10 million and $15 million and will require major fundraising, Ing said. Seniors in the care home wing at Palolo Chinese Home share bedrooms and a bathroom. Officials want the wing to have a less institutional feel.

In recognition of the $2 million grant, the lower campus of Palolo Chinese Home has been named after the late Clarence T.C. Ching, a local developer. Established in 1967, the Ching Foundation has contributed tens of millions of dollars to a host of organizations.

So far this year, the foundation has handed out about $20 million in grants.