New Kathy's House to be constructed near Froedtert & MCW Cancer Center

WAUWATOSA -- Families from out of town will have a new place to stay when visiting loved ones who are receiving medical care in Milwaukee. It was announced Wednesday, March 20 a site near the Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin Clinical Cancer Center will be the new home of Kathy’s House -- a nonprofit guest house serving out-of-town patients and families.

According to a news release from Froedtert, Kathy's House will occupy a 3.6-acre site on the southwest corner of the Milwaukee Regional Medical Center campus, on North 92nd St. between Doyne and Wisconsin Avenues. It is just south of the Froedtert & MCW Clinical Cancer and the Center for Advanced Care.

Rendering of Kathy's House to be built near Froedtert & Medical College of Wisconsin Cancer Center



The release says the new, two-story facility will have 36 rooms, doubling Kathy's House current capacity. It will also have a separate wing for patients with compromised immune systems and patient services room for blood draws and private consultations. It will also have a kitchen, family room, exercise room, courtyard, walking trail.

Kathy’s House President and Chief Executive Officer Patty Metropulos says the current facility has been operating at capacity for several years, and over the past two years was forced to turn away 500 guests because no rooms were available. In addition, the 2021 expiration of its lease with St. Camillus Health Center for its current site at 600 North 103rd Street added urgency to efforts to find a new, larger location.

“For nearly 20 years, Kathy’s House has been a refuge for people facing the stress of a serious illness,” said Metropulos. “Eighty-five percent of our guests are patients being treated for cancer at the Froedtert & MCW Cancer Center, or their family members. More recently, we are seeing more people with conditions involving the heart or organ transplants. Literally across the street from Froedtert, this new location will be ideal for our guests.”

Kathy’s House provides affordable lodging, meals and respite for non-local patients and their families who need to come to the Milwaukee area for medical care. On average, guests donate $32 per night, but no one is turned away if they cannot donate. Founded in 2001 in Wauwatosa, Kathy’s House is the only hospital guest house in southeastern Wisconsin that serves people of all ages.

Kathy’s House is open to patients of any Milwaukee area hospital, but Froedtert Hospital long has been its primary referral source. In 2018, more than 90 percent of Kathy’s House’s 1,502 guests were patients or family members referred by the Froedtert & MCW health network.