Upper Cape Chaplaincy

 Brief History of the Upper Cape Chaplaincy

The Falmouth Hospital Chaplaincy was long managed by the Cape Cod Council of Churches with funding help from Falmouth Hospital. In 1997, a significant decrease in funding greatly diminished the weekly hours of that chaplaincy and thus its effectiveness.

In response, Falmouth Clergy Association members invited Upper Cape religious communities to join them in finding a way to strengthen that chaplaincy. The result was the creation of the Upper Cape Chaplaincy as a non-profit corporation on March 4, 1998. Then, with the agreement of the Cape Cod Council, the management of the Falmouth Hospital Chaplaincy position was transferred to the UCC in conjunction with Falmouth Hospital.

That chaplaincy was strengthened when the clergy and religious communities most directly served by it became more involved in managing and helping to fund it. By the time of the UCC’s first Annual Meeting on February 7, 1999, sixteen Upper Cape religious communities were supporting its work. Soon afterwards, with Falmouth Hospital’s help, that chaplaincy position was significantly expanded.

From its beginning, the UCC hoped to develop additional chaplaincy services at other Upper Cape care facilities. On October 11, 2000, the UCC sponsored its first chaplaincy service at an area nursing home, and it created more such chaplaincies as time passed. In those very early years, the UCC offered workshops to Upper Cape communities on subjects related to spirituality and health care. It also developed a team of dedicated lay persons to work with its chaplain in visiting patients at Falmouth Hospital.

This history was provided by Rev. Doug Showalter, one of the founders and the first president of the Chaplaincy.