IMPRINTS - Alberni Valley Hospice Society

IMPRINTS
NEWSLETTER
Winter Issue 2011
Executive Corner
Executive Corner
IN THIS ISSUE
Executive Corner
Dear Hospice Friends:
If we could choose how we
ourselves would die, I think
that most of us would want to
go quickly and without pain.
The reality is only 10% of us
will die suddenly and the rest
of us will require end-of- life
care for days, months or
perhaps years. Knowing that
the passing of a life is as important as the birth of that life,
and how that life ends will
define the kind of society we
have chosen to be.
In our valley, we have the
benefit of close knit ties with
longtime
friendships,
neighbours and contemporaries — people who we know
and they know us. This helps
to contribute to the desire to
care for one another in the
best possible ways.
One of the nicest compliments we have received
when thanking our volunteers was “we need to thank
you for giving us this opportunity to volunteer, our efforts are meaningful and
very rewarding”. Ty Watson
House is a place where each
life is valued and appreciated, whether giving or receiving.
Another heartwarming compliment given recently by a
resident, “Being here is like
being at home with your
mother looking after you”.
I am blessed in so many ways,
to see the dream of Ty Watson
House become reality, observing the tender care being given
by a caregiver, pride in the
amazing people I work with,
and every day knowing that we
are only here because you care
enough to give your gifts of
support and encouragement.
Please celebrate with us this
year, 29 years of hospice programs in our community, three
years of residential care in Ty
Watson House and sharing our
lives together in such a beautiful place in this world!
Blessings, Lynn
AVHS Chaplain
We are very pleased to introduce Rev. Les Bonnell as the
AVHS Hospice Chaplain. Les has been a valuable member of
multidisciplinary teams at the Saanich Peninsula Hospital and
The Salvation Army Addiction & Rehabilitation Centre in Victoria,
providing many years of pastoral and spiritual care.
The Chaplain’s primary role is to address the spiritual needs of our
residents who may not have their own pastor or faith affiliation, and
to be available for families, staff and volunteers for emotional and
spiritual support. Les states that he is looking forward to using his
experience to help contribute to the health and well being of the
whole person and being a positive member of our hospice team.
AVHS Chaplain
Community Partners 2010
Seasonal Celebrations
Caregivers Taking Care of
Themselves
Elizabeth Causton Seminar
Healing Touch/Reiki Workshop
Massage Therapy Workshop
Community Charity of Choice
Fundraising Initiatives
Insights
“Loving, Caring Environment
Brought Peace to
Toni Nelson [McNaughton]”
MISSION STATEMENT
The Alberni Valley Hospice Society
is a volunteer organization whose
purpose is to provide compassionate, supportive, non-medical care
to persons affected by life threatening illness, death and bereavement
and to educate the public about
end of life, care giving, dying and
bereavement.
ALBERNI VALLEY HOSPICE SOCIETY
TY WATSON HOUSE
2649 2nd Avenue
Port Alberni BC V9Y1Z8
250.723.4478 Office
250.723.4481 Ty Watson House
Fax: 250-723-4471
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.albernihospice.ca
IMPRINTS
WINTER ISSUE 2011
Page 2
Acknowledging Our Community Partners
We extend our heartfelt appreciation to the
following businesses , service clubs and organizations for their excellent service and ongoing support during 2010.
Kingsway Hotel
Coastal Community Credit Union
Royal Bank of Canada (RBC)
Schmidt Bobcat and Trucking Ltd.
Salvation Army
LA Marine Ltd.
Houle Printing (Dennis Houle)
Gas Tech Services Ltd. (Glen Tilley)
ETS Equipment Transfer Services, Inc.
Alberni Glass & Mirror (R. & L Sawatsky)
Royal Canadian Legion Branch 169
Alberni Golf 9 Hole Golf Club
Husky Energy BC Ltd.
Pleasant Valley Golf (P.& J. Little)
The Hollies Men’s Golf Club
Kiwanis Club of Port Alberni
The League of Extraordinary Women
Koehle Merchandising (Theo Koehle)
Boutique Belles Amies (Linda Bowers)
Dennis Jonsson Motor Products Ltd.
Breaker’s Marine Ltd.
Royal Canadian Legion Branch 55
Deb’s Fashions (Deb Pearson)
Alpha Home Inspections Ltd.(T. Neyedli)
Lucky Dog Landscaping
CAREGIVERS
TAKING CARE
OF THEMSELVES
ELIZABETH CAUSTON SEMINAR
Island Lavender
Finning Canada (Bryan Bontron)
Jim’s Clothes Closet (Don Ferster)
Alberni Valley Lions Club
Coast Realty Group
Re-Max Mid-Island Realty
Dolan’s Concrete Ltd.
Port Alberni Online (Jack Tsai)
BC Hydro Employees Community
Dolce Vita Restaurant
Preceptor Gamma Beta Sorority
Alpha Omega Sorority
TecWorks (Marc Duquette)
AD Engravers
AV TIMES
The Pennyworth (Ike Patterson)
AV NEWS
The PEAK Radio
Buy Low Foods
Annamaria Gaiga
Quality Foods
BGR Construction
City of Port Alberni
Clinic Pharmacy
D’Sign Guy
Falcon Eye Security
Aines & Tyler
Happy Soles (Paul Kurucz)
Home Care Nurses, Community Health
Workers and Hospice Volunteers met on
October 27th, to listen to Elizabeth Causton, a Social Worker from Victoria Hospice
to learn more about how to care for themselves while taking care of palliative clients
and their families.
HEALING TOUCH/REIKI WORKSHOP
Two volunteers, Carla Scheffers and Rowena Chase, visited the Home and Community Care Office on December 1st, to introduce several staff to the relaxing and selfhealing properties of Healing Touch. Healing Touch and Reiki are provided by our
volunteers to palliative clients and their
families. These modalities provide an energy based approach to health and healing which uses touch to influence the
human energy system and bring balance
to the human energy fields thus affecting
physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual
health and healing. The goal in Healing
Touch and Reiki is to holistically restore
harmony and balance , placing the client
in a position to self heal. Healing Touch
and Reiki complement conventional
health care and are used in collaboration
with other approaches to health and healing.
MASSAGE THERAPY WORKSHOP
CHRISTMAS TEA FOR VOLUNTEERS
Hospice volunteers gathered at Ty Watson House for a Christmas Tea on December 1st. This was a celebration of gratitude
for all the work our volunteers have done during the past year
and of gratitude for the many blessings received throughout
the year.
MEMORY TREE FOR TY WATSON HOUSE
This year a new tradition was established with the introduction of the special “Memory Tree” to honour the residents
who have passed away in Ty Watson House.
Volunteer Yvette Denis won this prize
in our Seasonal Raffle. The gingerbread house was “re-gifted” to the
young grandsons visiting their grandfather. Our thanks to Tammy (CHW)
and her Mom Sadie for creating and
donating this decorative gingerbread
house to TWH.
“Memory Tree”
Registered Massage Therapist and volunteer, Ester Haack, demonstrated effective
massage therapy techniques to our volunteers in a recent workshop. Volunteers
found the workshop to be informative
and appreciated the chance to add a new
skill into their “comfort kit” for future use.
IMPRINTS
WINTER ISSUE 2011
Page 3
Community Charity of Choice Fundraising Initiatives
Heartfelt gratitude is expressed for a number of communitysponsored fundraising events during the past few months.
We are very appreciative of the time and effort
expended by the sponsors on our behalf.
The donation of beautifully-crafted quilts was accepted by staff
member Diane Kumagai from the “We Care Quilts Committee of
the Parksville Quilthouse Quilters Guild
Europa Club Vice-President, Carla Scheffers, gifted
Oktoberfest proceeds to Lynn Turner & Theresa Maxmenko
Members of the “Work of Heart Crafters” donated the proceeds from their
Holiday Basket Raffle to Ty Watson House.
Volunteers Anna Cole, Bette Hansen & Sandra Simpson
resorted to their “best attire” to attract customers
at the Sproat Lake Flea Market
KINGSWAY HOTEL MEAT DRAWS
continue to draw supporters every
Tuesday 4:30 pm & Sunday 3:00 pm.
Proceeds from the draws are donated
to Ty Watson House.
Port Alberni Kinsmen Club members generously donated the proceeds
from their fundraising event in support of Hospice
UPCOMING EVENTS TO WATCH FOR
We welcome the following donations:
9TH ANNUAL HIKE FOR HOSPICE — May 1
HOSPICE PALLIATIVE MONTH — May 1—31
BLACK “TY” GALA EVENT — May 28
Quality Foods receipts and points
Canadian Tire Money
Bottle return monies to the AV
Hospice account at the Bottle Depot
IMPRINTS
WINTER ISSUE 2011
INSIGHTS
by Helma Swinkels
“Loving, caring environment brought
peace to Toni Nelson [McNaughton]”
Reprinted from The AV TIMES, January 21, 2011.
“In my last column I was fortunate to share
the writing of the article with my dear
friend Toni. She wanted people to know
how it feels to be a resident of Port Alberni’s
Hospice House and had invited me for an
interview. She had always been reserved
about the bed program of the Alberni Valley Hospice Society and she definitely never
intended to spend the last days of her life
there. However she did move into Ty Watson House and it turned out to be a true
home to her, where she learned how to live
in dignity while facing her final days.
On December 19th 2010 Toni passed away.
She did not live long enough to share her
last Christmas with staff members and other
residents, who now had become her family.
With the support of this family Toni had
come to the end of her journey in a way
she had not thought was possible. She left
me her thoughts in her own words she had
recorded on tape. Toni wanted to share her
words with you one more time in this column.
Page 4
What Toni liked most of the concept of
our hospice house is, that it truly is a real
home, a house like any other house, not a
big facility, where you can live as if your
were at home. She could not wrap her
head around it, that Ty Watson House is
not receiving any Government funding
and that there are only so few of these
houses. She wanted to ask the Government: Why? If she had had the strength or
the time she would have gone to Victoria,
or even Ottawa for that matter, to have a
serious talk. She wanted to be our advocate, but her time ran out.
Toni died with the strong belief that we
will never be really gone. Our heritage
and our genes will stay alive, we will not
be lost. We should not fear death, we will
leave behind what we are. Toni was a
fighter and she was always ready to fight
for a cause. Her last cause was Ty Watson
House and the hope for funding and
more houses like it. She left us her words
on tape, for you to read, before she made
her transition surrounded by her new
found family, in peace and with a smile.
Marc Duquette of Tecworks Information
Systems has been a supporter of Ty Watson
House from our first phone call to ask his
assistance to set up our computer networking system. He is very knowledgeable and
extremely patient with our many questions
and keeps our system running smoothly.
Marc began his IT career in the early 90’s
with a lengthy and extensive training period
in Victoria. As a Technical Trainer he was
responsible for developing curriculum for
programming and network administration
courses for corporate employees, staff and
management. The courses were quite technical, often challenging, and usually on the
cutting edge. While teaching at IBM in upstate New York, Marc also travelled to about
half the United States, Canada and England
teaching his courses to numerous other
large companies e.g. IBM, UPS, Intel, BC Government. Marc welcomed the necessity of
staying current in his field but the considerable time he was away from home and family prompted his decision to change the direction of his career.
Returning to Port Alberni in the early 2000’s,
Marc accepted the position as the IT Manager of WriteOn! Business Solutions until its
demise. Marc, and three colleagues, seized
the opportunity to offer their computer expertise to communities on the Island and
established TECworks Information Systems.
“It means a lot to wake up in the middle of
the night and somebody is there to hold
your hand. You have no idea what it means
to make the transition with a smile, to be
ready, to be happy and to be able to let
go.”
Toni explains how a warm and cosy house
with loving and caring people took away
her fear and gave her the peace she
needed. At first she had made the mistake
not to take her health problem as serious as
she should have. Finally she had to face the
fact that she did not have that much longer
to live and she most certainly didn’t want to
go. But having to face the end of her journey, had also given her the opportunity to
experience living in Ty Watson House and
meeting so many wonderful and dedicated
people. She even learned so late in life that
a hospice house is about family values and
about living in dignity, before you die with
dignity. Having knowledgeable people at
your side, putting things into perspective
for you, while experiencing your life coming
to its end, meant so much to her. For her
there was nothing like Ty Watson House
with its dedicated people, to help us better
with passing on to the ones we leave behind, what is good in life and what needs
to be remembered. For Toni the greatest of
all she experienced was the peace in her
final moments, when she would make the
transition, she would not be alone.
A VERY SPECIAL THANK YOU
TO A VERY SPECIAL VOLUNTEER
Marc readily concedes that things haven’t
changed much for him and that the most
important part of the job for him is still there
--there’s always new technology to discover,
new problems to solve and he’s heartened
to see his clients’ smile both when he arrives and when he leaves their business or
home.
A Celebration of Life in Toni’s honour
was held in Abbeyfield January 22, 2011.
Helma Swinkels is a hospice volunteer
who regularly submits articles to the local
newspapers. She hopes that her columns
will help the community gain a better
understanding of the importance of
hospice care in our community.
Helma’s articles are also featured on our
website: www.albernihospice.ca.
We can highly recommend Marc for any
computer issues, networking, web hosting
and dependable support. Check out his
website at www.tecworks.ca
“Kind words are the music of
the world. They have a power
which seems to be beyond
natural causes, as though they
were some angel’s song which had
lost its way and come to earth.”
Anonymous