KINGSTON, N.Y. — Just this month, the city’s Common Council approved a resolution that urged Westchester Medical Center Health Network to keep the Herbert H. and Sofia P. Reuner Cancer Support House open.
The lawmakers’ action came after patients, donors, relatives, and others aired extreme disappointment over the facility’s potential sale and closure.
Last week, WMC, the parent company of HealthAlliance Hospital, where the house sits nearby, said the 80 Mary’s Ave. facility remains off the market.
TANIA BARRICKLO – DAILY FREEMAN
In a 2019 photo, Marilyn Fino of Milton, N.Y., right, works on felting an angel during a creative arts workshop that she helps facilitate at the HealthAlliance Oncology Support Program at the Herbert H. and Sofia P. Reuner Cancer Support House in Kingston, N.Y. To the left is co-faciltator Beverly Nielsen of Binnewater and participant Linda Melick of New Paltz, N.Y. (Tania Barricklo/Daily Freeman)
Still, design plans are underway to turn a space at the former Kingston Hospital, now a medical village, into the permanent spot for the oncology program once the house is sold.
“We are currently using the Reuner House and the Infusion Center within the Medical Village on Broadway,” the company said in a statement. “We are currently in the design phase at WMCHealth’s Medical Village — working closely with key stakeholders and community members to finalize crucial designs and details.”
The company said the Reuner House and Infusion Center at the medical village are currently offering several programs.
“WMCHealth is offering a variety of oncology support programs and services such as: support groups, financial assistance, social worker consults and visits, wig fittings, and the robust resources of the Reuner House library,” the company said.
In a community update report on the oncology program, WMC said the medical village “space (is) being thoughtfully designed to support comfort, healing, and connection for individuals and families navigating cancer.”
“Over the past several months, our dedicated workgroup, made up of clinicians, staff, partners, and community voices, has been actively shaping both the design of the new space within WMCHealth’s Medical Village and the future of the OSP,” the report said. “Together, we are creating a welcoming, home-like environment that reflects the needs and experiences of those we serve.”
The company added that the plans are taking shape. “Plans for the new space continue to take shape, with a strong focus on warmth, flexibility, and accessibility,” the company said. “The space is being designed to accommodate multiple support groups at once, while maintaining a peaceful, residential feel.”
WMC said features will include private offices, a wig fitting and storage area, flexible gathering spaces, and a kitchen designed for both comfort and teaching.
“Every detail is being considered, from soft, adjustable lighting and VOC-free materials to furniture that supports a wide range of physical needs,” the company said. “Elements from the original space, such as French doors and built-in shelving, are also being thoughtfully incorporated to preserve a sense of familiarity and comfort.”
In the coming weeks, the design team will finalize the schematic design, the update added.
“This milestone will allow us to move forward into the next phase of planning and permitting, keeping us on track for construction to begin this summer,” the company said.
It also said program expansion is expected.
“We’re also excited to share a new partnership with Holistic Health Community, which will bring additional integrative services to our patients and the broader Kingston community,” the report said. “Offerings will include massage therapy, Reiki, sound baths, and yoga nidra, alongside our existing clinical and support services.”
These programs are expected to begin in June, with sessions initially taking place at the HealthAlliance Hospital Auditorium before transitioning into the new OSP space in WMCHealth’s Medical Village, once it is complete.
“The OSP continues to provide essential, professionally led support groups and services,” the report said. “These offerings are distinct in their clinical approach, connecting patients and caregivers not only with one another, but also with vital resources and care coordination.”
The company, “As demand for services grows, we are actively exploring ways to expand staffing and outreach to ensure more individuals across our region can access this support.”
In August 2025, Westchester Medical Center Health Network announced that the house, which was deeded over by the Beichert family to Benedictine Hospital in 2003 and later acquired by WMC, was up for sale. The healthcare company said the Oncology Support Program would be moved later in 2025 to the medical village on Broadway in Kingston.
In October 2025, WMC said in a statement that the sale process, for the time being, had been put on hold. That remains the case today.
Earlier this month, Common Council President Andrea Shaut said the council’s unanimous vote to oppose the planned closure and sale of the support house was personal, as she has battled breast cancer.
The memorializing resolution also asks WMCHealth to honor and uphold the donors’ intent. Shaut said she still maintains hope that the Reuner House can remain open.
Shaut said she was diagnosed with breast cancer in October 2024 after going for her first mammogram. Shaut, who is currently in remission, has said the Reuner House has a special significance for cancer patients and survivors that only someone who has cancer can fully grasp.
The intention of some Reuner House supporters and those who have found solace there has not changed: They don’t want to lose it.
“Since its sudden closure by WMC in August 2025, families of the founding donors have been working together through a Save Reuner House campaign to preserve the House and its services as a vital community resource,” said Marie Beichert, the daughter of Flo Beichert, the former owner, in an email Friday, April 17. “Currently open on a limited basis, the House is slated to be put back on the market later this year.”
“Advocates won support from the Kingston Common Council, and will approach County legislators to support a similar memorializing resolution to keep the house going as originally intended,” Beichert added. “We hope the County legislators will recognize the full history and impact of the people and programs that made the house work so well. I believe saving the Mary’s Avenue facility according to the intent of my mom and so many other donors and volunteers makes sense.”
Jenny Fowler, a breast cancer survivor who lives in Esopus, said Friday, April 17, that she has supported the involvement of support groups to make sure the oncology program stays strong. Fowler also said she is maintaining a positive outlook.
“We’ve been especially grateful for the continuation of remote and in person support groups that are open to the community, and we’ll continue to advocate for patient and caregiver needs in that context,” Fowler said in an email on Friday.
She said members of her group toured the Reuner House with WMC staff to help them understand what’s most important to patients.
“It was an emotional visit, as we continue to mourn the loss of that unique space even as we weigh in on a new one,” Fowler said. “Their architect has incorporated member feedback into floor plan drafts of OSP within the Medical Village, and we’re in conversation about finishes and furnishing.”
“This is a work in progress,” she added. “We’d like to see a reinvestment in the community responsive model that was at the heart of OSP over its more than thirty year history.”
“We continue to ask for restoration of the full vision, services, and impact of this historic model program for the benefit of all,” Fowler said.