After losing both parents, days apart, the Lockyer family shares story of how Hospice supported their family and aims to ensure supports continue to be available to all Susan and Wayne Our parents shared a great love story – one...
Stories
For the Love of Jan
While grieving the loss of a wonderful wife, mother and grandmother, the Paris family thanks Hospice Peterborough for helping them cope and initiates fundraiser in honour of Jan Paris, pledging to match donations Bill Paris has more than 50 years of wonderful memories...
With Gratitude
“Ross”…This was the simple subject line of a message I received late this morning from a colleague. I knew what it would say before I clicked on it. Ross had died. I did not really know Ross, but hearing of his death hit me harder than I expected. You see, Ross was...
Sacred Space
By: David Kennedy, Supportive Care Counsellor, based on an anonymous client I never thought it could happen this way. Of course, that is what we all say afterwards. Funny thing about life and dying – you have to be doing one or the other but, while doing the one, we...
Hospice Songs for the Soul
I have had the privilege of being a Hospice Singer since the group began, serendipitously, more than nine years ago. We modeled ourselves after the Hallowell Singers, a group of singers associated with a hospice in Vermont. I would like to share a few words of Kathy...
DIEalogues
Last fall, the first Hospice Peterborough DIEalouges were hosted at Lett Architect Studio. These sessions were about opening up a conversation about death and dying to the community. During one of these sessions a question was posed to the attendees: If you could...
The Strange Events of Grief
It was just one of those nights. He had to get out of the house. Oh, he understood that his adult children were just worried about him and that is why they doted on his every move. “Come on Dad – you have to eat – have more food… Dad, now you have to get things done...
The Struggle to Hold On
By: David Kennedy, Supportive Care Counsellor, Hospice Peterborough Impermanence – everything changes. It is amazing how this simple truth gets so much resistance even when we know it is true. The difficulty comes at times in life when what is changing is...
Awakening To Moments
By: David Kennedy, Supportive Care Counsellor, Hospice Peterborough It was a very intense moment. The air was literally heavy with grief. She had just finished telling me the story of the sudden unexpected death of the love of her life. As she had poured out their...
In the Family Room
Composite story written by John Mowry based on his experiences working with families at end-of-life. My sister, brother and I sat in silence in the “family room”. The doctor had explained that Dad had suffered a life-threatening stroke and decisions needed to be made...