Congratulations to all our fundraising-savvy swimmers and their generous supporters! By the time you read this, we may already have cracked the $100,000 mark on our way to our $290,000 goal! Keep an eye on www.womenswimmin.org for the up-to-the-minute total.

Over the next 1.5 months, swimmers will continue raising funds on behalf of Hospicare in support of their efforts to swim 1.2 miles across Cayuga Lake on Saturday, August 18.

We're still looking for experienced boaters to escort swimmers safely across the lake. To register to be a boater, go to www.womenswimmin.org and click the "Register Here" button.
 
If you're not able to swim or boat but would still like to be involved in Hospicare's largest fundraiser, please consider volunteering. We rely on almost 100 volunteers on land to help with many aspects of the event, including: setting up; cleaning up; organizing swimmers, boaters, and parking; selling merchandise and raffle tickets; collecting donations for breakfast; and any of a number of other tasks that help make Women Swimmin' happen.

To sign up to volunteer, go to www.womenswimmin.org and click "Volunteer to Help" in the left menu.

Puddledockers has once again donated a kayak to be raffled off the day of the swim! Raffle tickets are $5 each (or 5 for $20), and are available both at Puddledockers Kayak Shop and at the Nina K. Miller Hospicare Center (open Monday-Friday, 8:30-4:30). New this year: tickets can also be purchased online! For a description of the kayak or to buy tickets online, go to www.womenswimmin.org and click "Buy a Raffle Ticket" in the left menu.

To donate in support of Women Swimmin', go to www.womenswimmin.org and click the "Support a Participant" button. To make a general donation to Hospicare, click the "Donate to Hospicare" button on the same page.

To be added to our e-mail list to receive updates, contact us at info@womenswimmin.org. Follow Women Swimmin' on Facebook at www.facebook.com/WomenSwimmin.

Thanks to everybody who joined us for Illuminations on June 7!

The uncertain forecast kept everybody on their toes practically until the start of the event, but ultimately we were treated to a picture-perfect spring evening, a fitting backdrop for the poetry, the music, and the innumerable glowing luminarias that gave form to an occasion of reflection and remembrance.

One guest who drove in from Illinois noted, "I was happy to actually experience the peaceful surroundings that were my mother's last earthly experiences, which in turn have given me some inner peace."

Yet while some attendees had never seen the Hospicare Residence and gardens in person before, for others, Illuminations was an opportunity to return to where they had bid farewell to their loves ones, and to reflect on their respective journeys. Another guest said, "Hospicare made my mother's last days a miracle -- a place so full of life, and caring, and the beauty that is possible in our frail human existence." She continued, "Illuminations became a significant part of a healing process I didn't really know I needed -- until the feelings washed over me, and brought me ever deeper into the human community."

With around 120 guests in attendance, the event also raised about $4000, which will help support Hospicare's ongoing patient care services in Tompkins County.

And of course, we offer our sincere gratitude to all who volunteered their time, talents, and energies to make Illuminations the inspiring, beautiful event that it is!

Although summer has scarcely begun, we're already planning our fall volunteer training.

Hospicare generally conducts training for new volunteers twice each year, in the spring and in the fall.

This fall's sessions are scheduled for 9/22, 9/23, 9/29 and 9/30, 9 AM to 2 PM each day.

Please note that attendance at all sessions is required to complete the mandatory 20 hours.

If you'd like to sign up for training, please download and return the application form, after which Manager of Volunteer Services Wendy Yettru will get in touch to set up an informal interview.

Contact Wendy for further information (wyettru@hospicare.org or 607.272.0212). Visit www.hospicare.org/volunteers/ for details, including examples of the types of volunteer opportunities available.

Much of what we do would not be possible without the generous efforts of our volunteers. If you've ever thought about getting involved but haven't taken the next step, consider joining us this fall!

Although Women Swimmin' dominates our spotlight at this time of year -- much to the credit of legions of devoted swimmers -- we'd like to take a moment to reach out to runners in our community.

If running is more your style, the National Hospice Foundation has a fundraising program for you. For 10 years, they have coordinated Run to Remember as a way for anybody whose life has intersected with hospice -- staff, volunteers, or family/friends of patients -- to honor the memory of those who have passed by training for and completing a race.

Run to Remember differs from many fundraisers in that there isn't one official event; you choose any race you wish and then register with NHF. Half of the funds you subsequently raise are donated to a local hospice of your choosing, and the other half go to support NHF's national initiatives.

NHF provides "full online training and fundraising support plus an individual fundraising web page." They also emphasize that the program is for "any race, at any pace": people at all levels, from casual walkers to competitive runners, are welcome.

This is a wonderful opportunity to benefit both yourself and your community, all while honoring the memory of those who have received hospice services. For more information, visit www.runtoremember.org.

Clinical Administrative Assistant Sandy Allen and former Provider Relations Specialist Chris Fire recently spearheaded an effort to assemble care packages for marines serving in Afghanistan.

Over the course of a month, Hospicare staff contributed all manner of items, including: books, snacks, cards, hand sanitizer, drink mixes, lip balm, antacid, cough drops, tuna, breath mints, and sunscreen.

Enclosed with each package was a brief note from Hospicare expressing gratitude for each marine's service to his or her country.

Sandy's own son, Blake, is among those serving in Afghanistan. But in addition to Sandy's very personal connection to this initiative, she is also helping Hospicare further its mission to support all military personnel, both active and retired.

Since November of 2011, Hospicare has been enrolled in the We Honor Veterans program, a collaboration between the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

According to www.wehonorveterans.org, one out of every four dying Americans is a veteran.

Currently, Hospicare is a Level One Partner in the program. Over time, partners can earn levels as high as Four, each successively indicating a greater level of demonstrated service to veterans.

Through the We Honor Veterans partnership, we hope to leverage every opportunity to address the unique end-of-life care needs of veterans in our community.

Early this past month, Hospicare received a kind donation of beautiful, lovingly handcrafted bags, courtesy of the Longview Quilters.

These bags provide a way for family and friends of our residence patients to collect and transport their loved ones' belongings after they pass away.

As an alternative to paper bags, cardboard boxes, and the like, these bags add a touch of grace and humanity and support the hospice principle of "death with dignity."

Longview is a residential senior retirement community and our neighbor on South Hill, scarcely a mile from the Nina K. Miller Hospicare Center.

We thank the Longview Quilters for their caring and generosity, and are confident their gesture will be deeply appreciated.

Writer and Hospicare volunteer Elaine Mansfield, whose work we profiled last month, recently introduced us to an outstanding website and blog self-evidently titled Grief Healing -- and to its founder, Marty Tousley, CNS-BC, FT, DCC.

Marty has been a bereavement counselor at Phoenix, AZ's Hospice of the Valley since 1996, and boasts a long roster of additional professional and volunteer achievements. Elaine herself has done extensive work on the subjects of grief and loss, both for Hospicare and independently; so connecting and collaborating with Marty came naturally.

Grief Healing is a rich repository of resources that includes articles, reflections, quotes & poems, courses, discussion groups (sponsored and supported by Hospice of the Valley), and numerous links. Marty herself is a prolific contributor, having authored a plethora of articles and blog posts cataloged at www.griefhealing.com/articles-by-marty-tousley.htm.

While Marty offers extensive help for people mourning the loss of fellow humans, she also takes care to validate and support those who have lost animal companions, noting that "grief is indifferent to the species of the loved one who was lost."

Hospicare acknowledges that grief is a nuanced and highly individualized journey, and that support for the bereaved is as integral to our mission as support for patients themselves. In addition to providing our own information and services on grief and loss, we encourage those so inclined to avail themselves of excellent resources from around the Web.

We found Grief Healing helpful, compassionate, and inspiring, and thought you might too.

• Grief Healing website (www.griefhealing.com) 
• Grief Healing blog (www.griefhealingblog.com) 

 
 

Hospice Bereavement Counselor, writer, and Grief Healing Founder Marty Tousley

July dates include:

• Women Singin' - July 3; 5:30-7:00 PM  
• Evening Bereavement Support Group - July 18 [not meeting July 4 due to holiday]; 5:30-7:00 PM
• Mindfulness Practice - Wednesdays; 7:30-9:00 PM  
• Tuesday Lunch Group - July 10; 12:00 PM
• Wednesday Breakfast Group - July 25; 8:30 AM