Grief is a tricky thing.  One minute you can be chugging along doing just fine and dandy, when all of the sudden you are struck by sadness or loneliness.  It comes up so swiftly that it forces emotion right out of you like a waterspout.  Sometimes, with tears pouring down my face, I whisper to the nonresponding sky above, “I miss you mom.”

A photo of my mom.

A photo of my mom.

I share my experience with you not so that you feel sorry for my grief.  My sadness is often quickly accompanied by the peace in knowing that I have an abundantly blessed life.   I can smile at the memories that stir inside my heart when I think of my mom, thankful for the abundance of love she had to give to me and my siblings.

Great comfort also comes to me knowing that I live in a community that chooses to so compassionately support friends and neighbors through the very fragile time that is end of life.  To be a part, in my own small way, of ensuring that Hospice House & Support Care of Williamsburg continues to thrive and give to others because of the love of this community for our fellow man is something I feel tremendously blessed to do.

So as you read this blog, written on the heels of Mother’s and Father’s Days, I ask you to do two things:

  • Take time. When she or he is gone, you will never get that time back. Be present in your loved one’s life. Linger just a little longer.
  • Remember too that you are part of a very caring community which provides compassionate support for you and your loved one at end of life through Hospice House & Support Care of Williamsburg.

Since 1982 Hospice House & Support Care of Williamsburg, thanks to the generosity of our community, has enhanced the quality of living for our friends and neighbors during the last phases of life.  We also are committed to bereavement support for those grieving the loss of a loved one.

I invite you to help me and the more than 350 Hospice House & Support Care volunteers who continue the mission of excellence and compassionate care here at Hospice House and in homes throughout our community by making a gift to support our work.   When you make a gift, you become a partner in our efforts to ensure that guests in Hospice House, patients in their homes, families, and the community receive the care and support they need, free of cost, during the final phases of life.

Sincerely,

audreysignature

Audrey Smith

Executive Director

 

P.S.  Please make your annual gift today. Every gift counts. Those contributors making an annual unrestricted gift of $1,000 or more by June 30, 2017 will be recognized in the Rodgers-Ellis Society.  Hospice House & Support Care of Williamsburg is a 501(c)(3) organization and your gift is tax deductible.  All of our programs and services are funded entirely by donations. To make a gift online please visit: https://williamsburghospice.org/donate/  Thank you.

 

 

 

Audrey Smith is the Executive Director of Hospice House & Support Care of Williamsburg (HHSCW). HHSCW is a social-model hospice that cares for people at the end of life, comforts the bereaved and empowers others to do the same. The Hospice House itself is a spacious residence that is a home away from home for our guests and their families. Support care services range from companionship in families' homes to extensive bereavement programs provided to families throughout the community. Hospice House & Support Care of Williamsburg is a 501(c)(3) organization that is entirely funded by contributions. No family or individual ever receives a bill for our services and support; nor do we accept Medicare, Medicaid or other reimbursements. For more information or to make a gift, please call Hospice House & Support Care of Williamsburg at 757-253-1220 or visit www.williamsburghospice.org.

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