February 2015 News & Events
We Need You!
Join Us for Spring Volunteer Training, Coming This April

Marlaine Dafler gives a patient a foot massage.
Marlaine Darfler, LMT, gives a foot massage to a patient in the Hospicare gardens.

 

Would you like to volunteer with Hospicare? We depend on volunteer community members to help our agency carry out our work. Our trained volunteers visit patients in their homes or assisted care facilities, offering practical help and companionship. They also assist the agency in other ways, depending on their interests and backgrounds. 

 

Right now, we are especially looking for the following volunteers:

  • Tompkins and Cortland County community members willing and able to visit patients in Cortland County.
Read more about Hospicare spring volunteer training!

Resources for Caregivers 
Learning to Help Your Loved One
A younger woman puts her arm around an elderly woman.
Taking care of a loved one at the end of life can be an overwhelming responsibility. There are so many questions to answer and issues to address. What do you do if you live far away from your loved one and are not able to physically care for him or her? How do you balance caregiving and work? What happens if the care of your loved one becomes so demanding you aren't able to provide all that is needed? When is it time to call hospice?

There are some internet resources that offer practical information for caregivers, as well as expert advice on how to deal with difficult end-of-life problems.   
End-of-the-Year Events
Community Fundraisers Raise Money for Hospicare 

 

15 STEPS owners Ken Jupiter and Bettsie Park present a check for $1,200 to Dale Johnson, Hospicare executive director, and Mike Katz, Hospicare director of development and community relations.

This Holiday season, Hospicare was honored by the many community fundraisers held to raise funds for our end-of-life work. Thank you to our compassionate friends and neighbors. We are humbled by your generosity.
  • 15 STEPS: As they have for many years, 15 STEPS held a three-day store event the weekend after Thanksgiving, during which 10% of all proceeds were donated to Hospicare. The event raised $1,200.
  • Women Singin' Jewelry Sale: This sale of gently used jewelry, held November 15 at GIAC, raised $869. A second sale, held later at Hospicare, raised another $246.
  • Danby Federated Church Christmas Eve Offering: This special offering, split between Hospicare and the Danby Fire Station, raised $835 for Hospicare.
  • Lansing Senior Citizens: A December fundraising sale raised $306 for Hospicare.
  • Contemporary Trends: Once again, Contemporary Trends offered their Stressless Chair sale at the end of the year, asking customers to donate at least $50 to Hospicare in exchange for a discount on a new chair. The special deal raised $400 for Hospicare.  
Save the Dates!

Held at the Nina K. Miller Hospicare Center

172 E. King Road, Ithaca, NY

  • Women Singin' 2/3, 3/3 (1st Tuesday of the month), 5:30-7:00 PM
  • Monthly Bereaved Parents Group 2/5, 3/5  (1st Thursday of the month), 5:30-7:00 PM
  • Morning Support Group for Newly Bereaved
    2/12 & 2/26, 3/12 & 3/26 (2nd & 4th Thursdays of the month), 10:00-11:30 AM For those with a loss in the last 18 months.
  • Evening Support Group for All Bereaved 2/4 & 2/18, 3/4 & 3/18 (1st & 3rd Wednesdays of the month), 5:30-7:00 PM    

  • Write Your Grief Tuesdays, 2/10, 3/10 & 4/14, 3:00-4:15 PM

  • Grief Song Saturday, 2/28, 10:00 AM-4:00 PM, and Sunday, 3/1, Noon-3:00 PM This is a two-day weekend workshop.
  • Spring Volunteer Training Tuesdays & Wednesdays, 4/7, 4/8, 4/14, 4/15, 4/21 & 4/22. Attendance at all six classes is required.
Held at the Cortland Hospicare Office
11 Kennedy Parkway, Cortland, NY
  • Morning Support Group for All Bereaved 2/3, 3/3 (1st Tuesday of the month), 10:00-11:30 AM
  • Afternoon Support Group for All Bereaved 2/19, 3/19 (3rd Thursday of the month), Noon-1:30 PM
Off Site Events
For more information on any of the above groups or events, please call 607-272-0212, or visit our Events page to download a PDF of our current calendar.

 
Our mission is to bring medical expertise and compassionate, respectful care to people and their loved ones at any stage of a life-threatening illness, and to provide information and education about advanced illness, dying and bereavement to the entire community.

In the News
A doctor looks at our broken healthcare system and asks whether saving the life of a terminal patient is always the best medicine.

  

Consumer Reports follows the last days of Paul Scheier, who faced the end of life on his own terms, in his own home with his wife and children by his side--showing how a good death is possible in America today.

A "Death Midwife" works to ensure that death is a relational experience for the dying and for family, friends and community.

End-of-Life Care in America Is a Scam
The writer of this Newsweek opinion piece takes a tough look at what he considers the healthcare industry's failings at the end of life.
How Americans' Refusal to Talk About Death Hurts the Elderly
The current national conversation about death, fueled by recent essays by Ezekiel Emanuel and Atul Gawande, is really about autonomy, argues the author. 

Website of Interest


A website dedicated to fostering connections between those grieving the loss of a parent. The site features a blog and radio interviews, as well as other grief resources. 
two hands clasping
Help terminally ill people spend the end of their lives peacefully and without pain.

Our Wish List
Items to make patients and their families more comfortable. 

Amazon Smile
Shop through Amazon Smile, and 0.5% of your purchase price will be donated to Hospicare.
Quick Links  

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info@hospicare.org

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