Tom Helfenbein, Chair, Compass Regional Hospice’s Board of Directors.
Tom Helfenbein of Stevensville was named chair of the Compass Regional Hospice board of directors. He steps into this leadership role after serving on the board since 2010. Helfenbein follows Kathy Deoudes, who still remains an active member of the Compass Regional Hospice board.
In his professional life, before retiring in 2014, Helfenbein was the President and CEO of Fellows, Helfenbein & Newnam Funeral Homes. He started his career in the funeral business with Hubbard Funeral Homes in Baltimore, which inspired him to attend mortuary school to become a licensed funeral director. He later moved to the Eastern Shore, to partner with Hubbard, to operate a funeral business in Church Hill and Chester. Since then he has partnered with Newnam Funeral Home in Talbot County, Fellows Funeral Home in Kent County and Fleegle & Helfenbein Funeral Home in Caroline County.
Helfenbein says, “my proudest accomplishment was being a first generation funeral director.” Now all three of his sons — Kirk, Chad and Ryan, are licensed funeral directors and run the Fellows, Helfenbein and Newnam Funeral Homes in Queen Anne’s, Kent, Talbot and Anne Arundel counties. In his retirement, he enjoys spending time with his wife Bobbye and their three sons, daughters-in-law and seven grandchildren.
Through his work in the funeral service, Helfenbein has been especially dedicated to helping families heal after the loss of a loved one. Heather Guerieri, executive director, Compass Regional Hospice, comments, “Tom’s expertise and compassion for helping families through difficult and delicate end-of-life processes mirrors the culture of hospice.” Helfenbein has been an active member and longtime supporter of hospice services in our community, as he was involved in the startup of Hospice of Queen Anne’s, now Compass Regional Hospice. “His advocacy for end-of-life care is what makes Tom an ideal candidate for board chair,” says Guerieri.
“I strongly believe that hospice should have been an accepted part of our culture a long time ago. The fact that we are able to help people maintain dignity at the end of their life is a wonderful thing,” says Helfenbein. “I have always viewed hospice as having the ‘best of the best’ employees and volunteers and to be chair of the board is certainly a privilege.”
Serving with Helfenbein on the executive committee of Compass Regional Hospice’s board are, Edward Allen, vice chair; Julie McMahan Thomas, secretary; and Teresa Baumann, treasurer. Other board members include Matthew Albers, Martha Baker, Betty Ballas, Livingston Banks, Kathy Ciambruschini, Joyce Davis, Debbie Dean, Kathy Deoudes, Frank Divilio, Janice Feeley, Alan Hais, Diane Pappas, Doug Pierson, C. Irving Pinder, Jr., Gary Smith, James G “Zeke” Warner and Marsha Wilder.
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