After years of planning and home renovations, we opened our doors to Residents in October 2023!
Living at
the Lily House
Nestled amongst the pine trees and within view of Wellfleet Bay, The Lily House provides residents with around-the-clock compassionate and holistic care—including physical, emotional, social, and spiritual support—in a beautiful and peaceful home with a maximum of two residents at a time.
Each resident has their own private bedroom, with space for a friend or family member to stay overnight, especially during times of active dying. Each resident bedroom includes an en suite bathroom with a roll-in shower and radiant heat. All residents, as well as their friends and family, have access to shared common spaces, including living room with gas fireplace, full kitchen, dining room with French doors opening onto a wrap-around deck, and contemplative outdoor gardens.
The Lily House nurtures feelings of being at home, for residents as well as their friends and family. We support our residents to live as fully as possible until the time of death. As mobility and strength allows, this will include spending time outdoors on the deck, in the garden, and at the beach at Wellfleet Bay.
The Lily House also provides a private respite room that opens onto a balcony overlooking the gardens and with a view of Wellfleet Bay. The respite room is for family and friends when they need a calm and quiet place to make a phone call, meditate, pray, cry, journal, rest—or simply be present with their thoughts and feelings.
Comfort Care
The Lily House staff and care support team includes certified nurse assistants, end-of-life doulas, and trained community volunteers—all of whom work together to provide residents with around-the-clock attentive and compassionate comfort care. Designed to help relieve pain, anxiety, and isolation—and to nurture feelings of love and belonging—comfort care support helps residents experience the highest quality of life throughout the dying process.
A contemplative approach is at the heart of our care, which means being fully present, truly listening to one another, and being intentional in everything we do—whether it is helping a resident sit up in bed, listening to life stories, giving sips of water, readjusting a pillow, changing a brief, or simply holding a hand as death nears.
Comfort Care Services Include
bathing, toileting, and dressing
personal grooming
transfers and repositioning
medication management
pain and symptom management
meal preparation and assistance with eating
laundry and housekeeping
integrative wellness therapies
therapeutic touch
music and song at the bedside
reading at the bedside
companionship, listening, and peaceful presence
guidance through the dying process vigil sitting
Hospice Care
Residents must be enrolled with a Cape Cod Medicare-funded hospice organization that provides comprehensive medical care and oversight, including prescribing pain medications and monitoring pain symptoms. The hospice organization also provides residents with any necessary medical equipment, including a fully adjustable bed.
Residents also have access to services provided by the hospice team, including a medical director, registered hospice nurses, certified personal aids, licensed social workers, trained volunteers, and non-denominational chaplains. The Lily House staff works closely with the chosen hospice provider to ensure the specific medical and healthcare needs of each resident are met.
​Medicare-Funded Hospice Organizations on Cape Cod
Beacon Hospice, an Amedisys Company
Cape Cod Healthcare Visiting Nurses Association
For more information about hospice and tips for choosing a hospice provider, visit the
National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization.
Note: The Lily House does not bill Medicare or private insurance for medical hospice services, which are a Medicare covered benefit. Billing for medical hospice care is arranged between the resident, and/or the resident’s health care proxy, and the medical hospice provider.
Admission & Cost
To live at The Lily House, residents must:
- be enrolled with a Cape Cod Medicare-funded hospice organization
- have a medical diagnosis of three months or less to live
- have chosen to stop receiving curative treatments
- have a signed MOLST form indicating Do No Resuscitate
- have a designated health care proxy and financial power of attorney
- have a hospice plan for continued care in case of discharge
Additional admission considerations include:
- must be free of infectious or contagious diseases/conditions
- have no IVs or in-use feeding tubes
- Dementia or Alzheimer’s Disease will be considered on a case-by-case basis, and only if a secondary diagnosis
- mental health issues will be considered on a case-by-case basis, and only if there are no aggressive or violent behaviors

Cost
The Lily House operates on a pay-as-you-can, pay-it-forward model. The daily cost of caring for our residents is $250 per day, per resident. We invite our residents, and their family and friends, to contribute more or less as their resources allow. A gift upon arrival is especially welcome, and gifts made every two weeks during a resident’s stay are helpful and much appreciated.
We rely on the generosity of individuals, local businesses, grant programs, and foundations to support our work. Admission to The Lily House is not based on income level or ability to pay.
Help us provide compassionate end-of-life care for our residents.
Pre-Death Planning
It’s always too soon. Until it’s too late.
Talking about death and dying can be one of the most difficult conversations to start. It is easy to feel overwhelmed. When we do, however, engage in conversations about the inevitable—and create an end-of-life plan—any fears, worries, and anxieties we felt often begin to dissipate. Advance planning offers many benefits, including peace of mind, improved end-of-life experiences, and increased ability to live more fully in the present. It is also one of the most meaningful ways to honor life—by bringing conscious choice and contemplative awareness to death.
The Lily House, if requested, provides assistance with end-of-life planning by offering consultations for residents and their family and friends. We can provide education and resources for making informed choices when considering end-of-life wishes—including wishes for before, during, and after death. We also serve as advocates for our residents, ensuring their end-of-life wishes are followed.
After-Death Care
It’s ok to take time when saying good-bye. There is no hurry. The Lily House provides a safe and sacred space following the death of a resident. We provide opportunities for friends and family to engage in after-death care of their loved one—and we are honored to assist as requested.
After-death care can include gently bathing a loved one using a special basin of water infused with essential oils, followed by any or all of the following: dressing them in their favorite clothes, laying them in honor surrounded by flowers, candles, and personal mementos, playing music and singing songs, reading poetry or scripture, and sitting vigil. Creating a shrouding ceremony can be an especially meaningful and loving last act of after-death care.
These tender rituals allow time to honor the person who has died, and can inspire feelings of love, connectedness, and gratitude for those remaining. Spending time with a loved one after death also supports the grieving process, helping to integrate the loss.
To honor Lily House residents, and to thank them for all they have taught us, we plant a flower in our memorial garden and add a heart rock from the beach with their name written on it. Each year, in September, we gather together to remember and celebrate our residents.
