Marsha Filion

Marsha exemplifies the way that women have pivoted to support their families and their communities through the pandemic. A working mother of two boys, Marsha is also the Executive Director and sole employee of Portsmouth’s Hospice Help Foundation. Like many women in the Granite State and beyond, Marsha needed to adapt to keep her family safe and to ensure her boys’ education didn’t fall to the wayside as schools struggled to identify the best way to move forward.

Marsha found herself, like many parents, overseeing remote-learning, coordinating Covid-safe play dates to keep her boys happy and healthy – and did all this while single handedly keeping the Hospice Help Foundation not only running but growing. While all Americans were impacted by the pandemic, hospice patients – already diagnosed with a terminal disease and typically 65+ – were especially at risk. They also tend to have more volatile financial situations. Despite the pandemic, the Foundation (which really means Marsha) ensured that hospice patients were able to stay in their homes, maintained access to electricity, and had food on the table. During this time of increased need, the Hospice Help Foundation supported 100% of patients who turned to them for support – not turning away a single applicant. Further, they expect the need to grow in terms of both number of applicants and size of applications as the state of emergency is lifted, months of postponed payments are due, and many people remain unemployed.

As many of us are looking toward vaccinations as the end of the tunnel, Marsha and the Foundation are gearing up for an even bigger year ahead. Marsha is always a SHEro but this year in particular, she has really made a mark during a particularly challenging time. (Plus she has a wicked sense of humor and always makes time for a call from a friend). In recognition of her service to women and men across the state of NH and beyond, I nominate Marsha Filion for the NH Women’s Foundation AmplifiHER award.