ARKANSAS HOSPICE PRESIDENT

& CEO MICHAEL AURELI DIES AT 61

Michael V. Aureli, president and CEO of Arkansas Hospice, Inc., died Tuesday, June 28, 2011, after unsuccessful treatment for cancer. He was cared for in his final days by the hospice program he founded. He was 61 years old.

Aureli’s passing marked the end of a life dedicated to providing quality hospice care to the state of Arkansas. He began each day reflecting on Arkansas Hospice’s mission statement, “to enhance the quality of life for those facing terminal illness and grief by surrounding them with love and embracing them with the best in physical, emotional and spiritual care.”

“Michael Aureli was a visionary leader who changed the lives of those he touched,” said Judy Wooten, chief operating officer and acting executive director of Arkansas Hospice.  “His love for the dying and passion for excellence set the standard for end-of-life care in Arkansas.”

With two master’s degrees – one in divinity and the other in business – plus 16 years experience as a pastor and 17 years experience in leading Arkansas Hospice, Aureli was both compassionate and capable. The compassionate heart of a pastor proved to be invaluable in setting the appropriate service culture for Arkansas Hospice to fulfill its mission. However, Aureli thought more was needed than just a compassionate heart for him to be a successful business leader. The MBA and related experience was critical to Aureli in orchestrating the compassionate service Arkansas Hospice provides within budget and according to plan.

Aureli often shared the story of his mother in articles, videos and speeches as his personal connection with hospice and how it affected his involvement with the organization:

In 1983, my mom was dying of ovarian cancer. After three years of surgeries and chemotherapy, she was at a stage of serious decline in health. One morning, she said, “Michael, I hurt so badly, please take me to the hospital.” Quickly my sister and I wrapped her in a blanket – she must have weighed less than 100 pounds at that time – and rushed her to the local emergency room. Her physician, who had been with her throughout the illness, came in, sat down and with sadness looked her in the eye and said, “I’m sorry, Betty. There is nothing more we can do for you.”

She cried. He cried. We all cried. My sister and I again wrapped her in a blanket and took her home. Mercifully, she went into a coma a few days later and died within a couple of weeks. 

We knew nothing of hospice in those days but I often pondered the doctor’s words: “Nothing more we can do for you.” Nothing? That seemed so incomplete.

Years later, when I became involved in Arkansas Hospice, I was excited to learn that a lot can be done for the dying when nothing more can be done to cure them.

Aureli’s experience with his mother was a strong motivation in addressing the hopes of Arkansas Hospice patients and families.

Arkansas Hospice was incorporated as a not-for-profit hospice organization in January 1992. At that time, it was actually a family-run organization with family members making up the board and the founding family member serving as the president. The family left in September 1994 to start a privately owned hospice service.

As the assistant administrator at the time, Aureli was promoted to the position of president and its community volunteer fundraising board became the governing board. Aureli and the Director of Development at the time, Dee Brazil Dale, had to start from scratch with no patients. The little savings they had in the bank had to be greatly enhanced through years of fundraising before they could start hospice services again.

”Michael persevered for years, against great odds and with limited resources, to pioneer inpatient hospice services in Arkansas,” said Brazil Dale. “When we opened the first inpatient hospice in 2000, the need was proved as patients came from all over Arkansas and beyond, and most importantly, the way was paved for other hospice programs to follow suit. Every patient and family – now numbered in the thousands – receives that care in no small part, due to the efforts of Michael Aureli.”

This dramatic change in leadership was the birth of Arkansas Hospice as an authentic community hospice program grounded by strong volunteer board members who insisted on the highest quality hospice services for all in need regardless of their ability to pay. The program has grown since reopening in November 1998 to serve more than 2,500 patients annually in more than 30 counties throughout the state. Most importantly to Aureli, the quality of its care is rated among the highest in the nation.

In a May 2011 article of Inviting Arkansas, Aureli explained his greatest accomplishments as a hospice leader – to have been the founding father of hospice facility services in the state and guiding Arkansas Hospice through its rebirth and exponential growth for nearly two decades.  He was also a past-president of the Hospice and Palliative Care Association of Arkansas (HPCAA) and an active member of the Public Policy Committees of HPCAA and the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization.

As president and CEO of Arkansas Hospice, Aureli was Arkansas Business Non-Profit Executive of the Year in 2002; was bestowed with the Paul Harris Award from the Little Rock Rotary, 2004; led Arkansas Hospice to receive the Arkansas Business Non-Profit Organization of the year, 2004; and guided Arkansas Hospice to receive national recognition when it was presented with the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization’s M. Catherine Ray award in 2004.

“Michael led with a servant’s heart and leaves a great legacy, not only for a strong not-for-profit hospice program and the love of those he led, but also for the way he lived his life through terminal illness and death,” added Brazil Dale. “He died as he lived – with peaceful acceptance, forward-looking vision, and with his wife, tremendous grace. Together, they demonstrated the hospice philosophy to perfection.”

Even though Aureli was devoted to providing quality care to the terminally ill, his life was colored by numerous other pursuits as well. He was a member of Rotary Club 99; past-president of the River Plantation Property Owners’ Association; a member of the Cathedral of St. Andrew; and an avid gardener, beekeeper and golfer.

Memorial donations may be made to the Michael V. Aureli Endowed Fund at Arkansas Hospice in care of Arkansas Hospice Foundation, 14 Parkstone Circle, North Little Rock, Arkansas, 72116.