As we announced recently, the 9th annual Women Swimmin' for Hospicare will take place on Saturday, August 18 at the Ithaca Yacht Club.

Registration for swimmers and boaters will open on Monday, May 7, at 6 AM.

Our all-new, fully redesigned Women Swimmin' website should be launched in time for registration.

And don't forget, Felicia's Atomic Lounge will once again host a special night of relaxin' to benefit Women Swimmin'. "Women Chillin'" will be held at Felicia's on Tuesday, May 8, from 5-7 PM. Come celebrate Women Swimmin' registration by socializing with other swimmers, boaters, and Women Swimmin' supporters! Felicia's will donate a portion of the evening's proceeds to Women Swimmin' for Hospicare.

If you'd like to be added to our e-mail list to receive updates, please contact us at info@womenswimmin.org.

Please join us on the evening of Thursday, June 7, to enjoy the Hospicare gardens, light a luminaria in memory or in honor of a loved one, and share in refreshments.

There will also be a special program of remembrance featuring live music and poetry, and concluding with candlelight on the pond.

• 7:30 PM: Reception and Luminaria Lighting
• 8:00 PM: Program of Remembrance

The event is free to attend. Luminarias can be personalized for a suggested donation of $25. Donations are greatly appreciated, but not required.

If you wish to have a more enduring memorial at Hospicare for your loved one, you may order a teak bench or an inscribed paving stone for the Memory Walk in the Hospicare gardens.

Those who have had loved ones on Hospicare services in recent times should receive mailed invitations by the 2nd week of May. However, the event is open to the public, and all are welcome to attend. Anybody who does not receive an invitation but wishes to attend can RSVP by calling 607-272-0212.

Hospicare invites the community to experience music in a peaceful setting, and to see the beauty of the Hospicare residence and gardens.

In cooperation with the Ithaca College School of Music, Hospicare has been hosting a musicale series at the Nina K. Miller Hospicare Center.

Having enjoyed the Piano Chamber Ensembles performance on April 20, we're looking forward to the Woodwind Chamber Ensembles performance at 5:30 PM on Friday, May 4.

All performances feature students from the Ithaca College School of Music. Come enjoy delightful music and light refreshments in the relaxed atmosphere of the Hospicare Great Room. For more information, contact jdemakos@hospicare.org or call 607-272-0212.

As we reported in recent months, the Kitchen Theatre recently hosted staged readings of Peaches and Bird, written by former Hospicare board member Carol Kammen and directed by Sue Perlgut (known for the documentary Beets and Beans: Living and Dying with Hospice).

The Ulysses Philomathic Library (at 74 East Main Street in Trumansburg) will host the next staged reading on Sunday, May 6, at 3 PM, and a talk back after the show will once again feature Hospicare staff.

Peaches and Bird is a moving piece about women's friendship and loss, end-of-life care, and laughter and joy.

This performance is free and open to the public. For more information, call the library at 607-387-5623 or visit the Peaches and Bird website.


In last month's edition, we published a review by Hospicare Music Coordinator Jayne Demakos after she attended one of the performances at the Kitchen Theatre.

Reviewed By Roni Fuller,
Hospicare Volunteer

Into our lives, previously unhampered by the stress and challenges arising from the illness and possible impending death of someone to whom we are close, can come new realities which cause panic and pain.

For many people, life seems to live itself without these thoughts and concerns. When we come face-to-face with these realities, there is a sudden and crucial need to rethink what needs to be accomplished to assist an ill or dying friend, parent, child, spouse, or partner. The effect can be overwhelming.

Caregiver Revolution: 5 Easy Steps to Enlightened Caregiving, by Grant Abrams and Patricia Elizabeth, is a practical guide, attempting to provide solutions to the many problems and situations which arise for a new or more experienced caregiver.

The "Easy" of the title is perhaps misleading. The information is presented in a straightforward manner and is accessible to a wide variety of readers. However, the actual practices described are fairly complex as a whole. The book makes a valiant attempt to address itself to as wide a spectrum of people as possible, commenting on religious and spiritual themes, but keeping as broad a view as possible, to include many beliefs and practices.

Read the whole review as a PDF.

After months of preparation, we were pleased to host International Harp Therapy Program Founder/Director Christina Tourin for a series of events throughout the Ithaca area on Friday, March 30.

Hospicare Music Coordinator Jayne Demakos -- herself enrolled in Christina's program -- largely orchestrated the occasion, with funding assistance through Cornell University's Robinson Appel Humanitarian Award, thanks to a grant written by Cornell alumnus Eric Woods.

The day began at the Nina K. Miller Hospicare Center, where Christina gave a presentation to almost 30 of our staff. She performed a live demonstration with the aid of "HeartMath," which shows a real-time graphical analysis of a participant's vital signs while the harp therapist attunes his/her playing to that participant.

Later, Christina visited Cayuga Medical Center, where hospital chaplain Tim Dean arranged a session attended by another 30 people. Christina then returned to South Hill to address an audience of about 20 Ithaca College students, before capping the evening with the headlining event at Cornell, which drew a crowd of approximately 60 people of widely varying ages and affiliations with hospice and music/harp therapy.

As part of the Cornell event, Christina brought in an assortment of harps -- each a different bold color, together comprising a rainbow -- for people to play. They are typically used in settings where patients learn to play together, as in nursing homes or for special needs children. According to Jayne, one participant was particularly enamored with the harp she'd been given to play. Says Jayne, "Seeing and touching a harp is very powerful because we hear about harps, but most people have never even seen one in person, let alone played one."

Christina's visit underscores the growing recognition of the value of music therapy, particularly harp therapy. Hospicare's Music Program has been an integral portion of our services since its inception in 2006. In reflecting on the significance of Christina's visit and its success, Hospicare Executive Director Dale Johnson noted that music therapy is "an idea whose time has come." He went on to say, "We will likely be called upon to enhance our music offerings."

We will continue to share new developments in subsequent editions of this publication and on the Music Program page of our website.

Ruth Tamari, a transitions coach in Toronto, is volunteering her time to spearhead a project called "Our Thoughts on Aging."

It is a collection of interviews with people over the age of 21, regarding their personal perspectives on death and dying. Ruth's goal is to interview 100 people; at this time, she is close to 20.

Some of the completed interviews are available to peruse on her blog: ruthtamari.wordpress.com

Participation entails a confidential one-hour phone interview which is recorded, transcribed, and then e-mailed to the interviewee to edit as (s)he sees fit. Ruth limits her changes to grammatical edits.

Interviewees have the option of sending a one-to-two-line biography in which they may specify any way in which they would or would not like to be identified -- for instance, initials, first name/last initial, alias, etc.

For further information (or to participate), contact Ruth Tamari by phone at 416-972-6896, or by e-mail at info@ruthtamari.com. Or visit her website at www.ruthtamari.com.

The grief memoir reading group at Buffalo Street Books continues in May with Two Kisses for Maddy by Matt Logelin.

The group began in February and will continue through May, meeting at 3 PM on the first Sunday of each month.

Each session will have featured a current bestselling work that deals with grief and loss from a different angle:

• February 5th - History of a Suicide by Jill Bialosky
• March 4th - [sic]: A Memoir by Joshua Cody
• April 1st - Blue Nights by Joan Didion
• May 6th - Two Kisses for Maddy by Matt Logelin

Participants are still welcome to join for the one remaining session.

 

Please visit the Buffalo Street Books website for more information.

Lois Collins wrote a five-part series on end-of-life planning and care for Utah's Deseret News and KSL TV. Each article explores a different facet of what patients and family may face, and how some have come to navigate the challenges:

1. How will I die: Preparing your family, directing your care explains advance directives.
2. How will I die: Finding hope in hospice discusses hospice and debunks some common myths.
3. How will I die: A good life, a young death? reminds us that illness and death are not the sole province of the elderly, and that quality of life is partly a function of quality of time remaining when death is imminent.
4. How will I die: Negotiating death's details explores some of the myriad ways in which one can prepare for the inevitable.
5. How will I die: The high cost of death considers the material costs of various forms of care vs. their ultimate value to the patient and his/her family.

This series provides an informative primer on the types of considerations one may encounter in life-limitation situations, and makes useful suggestions for planning and discussion that may ultimately ease the burden on the individual, on loved ones, and on society as a whole.

  

May dates include:

• Mindfulness Practice - Wednesdays; 7:30-9:00 PM
• Women Singin' - May 1; 5:30-7:00 PM  
• Continuing Bonds Support Group - May 1 & 15; 5:30-7:00 PM
• Evening Bereavement Support Group - May 2 & 16; 5:30-7:00 PM
• Registration deadline for "Grief 101: Supporting Another in Loss" - May 4 (event occurs May 10, 12:00-1:30 PM)
• Registration deadline for "For Women Who Have Lost Parents" - May 4 (event occurs May 10, 6:00-8:00 PM)
• Next Performance in Hospicare Musicale Series - May 4, 5:30 PM 
• Peaches and Bird Staged Reading - May 6, 3:00 PM
• Women Swimmin' Registration Opens - May 7, 6:00 AM
• Tuesday Lunch Group - May 8; 12:00 PM
• Women Chillin' - May 8, 5:00-7:00 PM, Felicia's Atomic Lounge 
• Wednesday Breakfast Group - May 23; 8:30 AM