Tidewell Hospice plans to open the grief center to the community in August with the start of the 2021-22 school year. Tidewell's not-for-profit grief and bereavement services — including the Tidewell Family Grief Center — are fully donor-supported through contributions to the Tidewell Foundation and offered for free to the community, whether or not their loved one was a Tidewell patient. The Tidewell Family Grief Center in Ellenton was catalyzed by the Tidewell Foundation’s grant, which includes a lead gift from Walt and Renee Eppard. Tidewell Hospice’s experience in helping more than 8,000 people navigate grief each year — particularly throughout the COVID-19 pandemic — informed and inspired the center’s design, according to a news release.