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CHOO! CHOO! The Celebration Train Stops With A Bang: Fruitland Hospice Volunteers!

Kandice Dickinson
Community, Volunteering in Hospice

Heart ‘n Home Hospice & Palliative Care celebrates VOLUNTEER RECOGNITION WEEK: APRIL 15-21!

To celebrate Volunteer Recognition Week, Heart ‘n Home will be recognizing our outstanding Hospice Volunteers each day of the week (16-20th).  We will be honoring each Volunteer Team by office.  Heart ‘n Home currently has 5 hospice locations in Fruitland, Idaho; Emmett, Idaho; Caldwell, Idaho; Meridian, Idaho; and Baker City, Oregon.

I urge each of you to join us in recognizing and supporting those who volunteer and serve.  “We hope that Volunteer Recognition Week ignites a spark of motivation within each of you to volunteer your time and special talents to help our hospice patients and families through one of the most difficult stages of their lives.” said Brianna Walter, Director of Volunteer Services at Heart ‘n Home.

And the celebration party-train stops with our fabulous Fruitland Hospice Volunteer Team! Who may be listed last, but are most certainly NOT least!  Thank you to each of the following Caldwell Hospice Volunteers whom together have donated over 89,651 miles and over 9,738 hours! Thank you:

  • Charlotte Alexander, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • Larry Alexander, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • Debra Davis, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • Milly Davis, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • Dan Dickerson, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • Ella Downing, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • Lori Finch, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer, Heart ‘n Home Cicely Ambassador Advisor
  • Jim Humble, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer, Bereavement Volunteer
  • John Inman, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • John Kelleher, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • Naida Kelleher, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • Rick Kerr, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • Verda Koehn, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer, Bereavement Volunteer
  • Jennifer Medina, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • Nola Miller, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer, Bereavement Volunteer
  • Cathy Morrison, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • Laura Pirrie, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • Gloria Roberts, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • Alberta Savala, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer, 11th Hour Volunteer
  • Joe Shockley, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer, Bereavement Volunteer
  • Venita Shockley, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer, Bereavement Volunteer
  • Cherie Skogerboe, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer, 11th Hour Volunteer
  • Denny Skogerboe, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer, 11th Hour Volunteer
  • Tom Smith, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • Doyle Taylor, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • Lila Taylor, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • Patti Upton, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer
  • Judy Watts, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer, Heart ‘n Home Accounts Receivable Specialist
  • Ruby Braun, Fruitland Hospice Volunteer, 11th Hour Volunteer
  • Maria Acuna, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Bradee Burns, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Taylor Allen, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Kayla Burns, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Lucia Carbajal, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Jandee Carlson, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Kelsey Clow, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Jillian Cote, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Daniel Dahle, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Ethan Davis, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Talia Esplin, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Nik Fagen, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Trevor Finch, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Kacie Gastanaga, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Clara Gonzalez, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Diana Gonzalez, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Ramiro Gonzalez, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Connor Heersink, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Olivia Heersink, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Jasmin Herrera, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Kendra Kiramatsu, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Courtney Ingram, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Bibiana Juarez, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Victoria Marvin, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Kaylee Michael, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Holli Mullins, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Kenia Ortega, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Jesus Palomares, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Chase Paterson, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Titania Preston, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Ashley Pulido, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Sidronio Rangel, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Seth Reed, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Priscilla Rosilez, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Emily Tesnohlidek, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Emily Tingey, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Hailee Turner, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Kaylea Ware, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer
  • Alicia Williams, Fruitland Hospice Youth Volunteer

Although National Volunteer Recognition Week is coming to an end…..Heart ‘n Home never stops recognizing their wonderful Volunteers! Our team would not be complete without them! and our patients and their families would vouch for that as well 😉  Thanks again to our Volunteers, and to ALL of America’s outstanding and generous citizens we like to call “Volunteers!”

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And the celebration continues…Volunteer Recognition Week: Baker City, Oregon

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Kandice Dickinson
folder_openCommunity, Volunteering in Hospice
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Heart ‘n Home Hospice & Palliative Care celebrates VOLUNTEER RECOGNITION WEEK: APRIL 15-21!

To celebrate Volunteer Recognition Week, Heart ‘n Home will be recognizing our outstanding Hospice Volunteers each day of the week (16-20th).  We will be honoring each Volunteer Team by office.  Heart ‘n Home currently has 5 hospice locations in Fruitland, Idaho; Emmett, Idaho; Caldwell, Idaho; Meridian, Idaho; and Baker City, Oregon.

I urge each of you to join us in recognizing and supporting those who volunteer and serve.  “We hope that Volunteer Recognition Week ignites a spark of motivation within each of you to volunteer your time and special talents to help our hospice patients and families through one of the most difficult stages of their lives.” said Brianna Walter, Director of Volunteer Services at Heart ‘n Home.

Now starring our Baker City Hospice Volunteer Team!  Thank you to each of the following Baker City Hospice Volunteers whom together have donated 14,311 over miles and over 1,875 hours! Thank you:

  • Aletha Bonebrake, Baker City Hospice Volunteer
  • Stephanie Byran, Baker City Hospice Volunteer
  • Elva Chetwood, Baker City Hospice Volunteer
  • David Coombs, Baker City Hospice Volunteer
  • Jennifer Dennis, Baker City Hospice Volunteer, 11th Hour Volunteer, Bereavement Volunteer
  • Roxann Fisher, Baker City Hospice Volunteer
  • Ron Forrester, Baker City Hospice Volunteer
  • Allen Gerig, Baker City Hospice Volunteer, 11th Hour Volunteer, Bereavement Volunteer
  • Susan Gerig, Baker City Hospice Volunteer, 11th Hour Volunteer, Bereavement Volunteer
  • Betty Hack, Baker City Hospice Volunteer, Bereavement Volunteer, Heart ‘n Home Baker City Volunteer Coordinator
  • Phyllis Hammer, Baker City Hospice Volunteer
  • Darla Looney, Baker City Hospice Volunteer, Bereavement Volunteer
  • Troy Martin, Baker City Hospice Volunteer
  • Linda O’Neal, Baker City Hospice Volunteer
  • Lynne Proudfoot, Baker City Hospice Volunteer
  • Jeanne Schroder, Baker City Hospice Volunteer

More to come this week!! Be watching!

Giving Back: From the Heart of a Fruitland Student

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Kandice Dickinson
folder_openCommunity, Inspiring Stories
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comment1 Comment

“I’ve been fortunate to grow up in a home where my parents have been great examples of volunteers in the community, working hard for many organizations and they of course expected my brother and I to be a part as well.  In just the past couple of years, I’ve realized that I was  volunteering no longer just because I was doing it with my parents, but because it had taken hold of my heart.

This past two years have been tough on our community with the recession and situations that have affected our local people. I began to notice that people that were close to me were hurting and even my own family was struggling. Our little community here in Fruitland has been an awesome place to grow up.  We have such great community support and so many people have stepped up to volunteer or donate to almost anything that it’s students would need. Over time I’ve been noticing the results of so many donations the community has given our programs here in school. It is evident in the gorgeous baseball field, to the new scoreboard on the football field and to the many corporations listed in the gymnasium how the community reaches out and gives to us all the time. I realized it was time that the students learned to give back.

About this time I started volunteering at Heart ‘n Home Hospice & Palliative Care, I noticed that the employees were encouraged to pay a donation amount [to the Heart ‘n Home Foundation] to get the right to wear jeans on Fridays and I loved the idea. I spent some time with Heather the Volunteer Coordinator at that time and told her that I thought it would be a great idea to implement in our school since we have to wear uniforms, and I knew the kids would jump at the chance to wear jeans.

Once I spoke with Heather, the ideas started to form and I went right away to our school counselor, Mrs. O’Neil, to see what she thought of the idea. She loved the idea and thought it would be a great way to help the kids learn about giving back to our community.  With the help from my mom, we started researching local charities that I felt would be benefited the most. It was important to me to make sure that the charity was local so that the students could see immediately the impact that their donations would have on our community. I decided that we would choose one Friday a month and a different charity would be selected each month. Once we had chosen the dates, the charities, and how the program was going to work, Mrs. O’Neil and I went before the school board at their monthly board meeting to present the idea to them.

I must say that I was a little intimated when I first arrived in the room looking up at all the members sitting at their big round fancy table with their fancy name plates in front of them. I felt like I needed to say “Your Honor” or something, but I then caught the eye of one of the members and he gave me a big smile and a wink and I knew I was going to be okay. Mrs. O’Neil was a great supporter of my idea and stood by me each step of the way. She was a huge encourager and it would not have been as successful without her help. The board listened, asked questions regarding how I would collect the money, how it would be accounted for, how it would be dispersed, and the reason I wanted to start this. I was pleased to answer each question with confidence and from my heart.

The board let us know that they would think about it and inform us of their decision as soon as they could.  We received approval from the board on Tuesday afternoon and they decided that we had to raise at least $200.00 on each Foundation Friday in order to wear jeans. As soon as we got approval from the board, we hurried into action. By Wednesday morning we had posters made and put up, announcements were made over the school intercom and we used Facebook to get the word out. In two days time we raised $235.00 for our first charity which was Meals On Wheels at the Payette Senior Center in Payette, Idaho.  I am excited to see how much we can raise now that we have more time this month.

My hope for the future of Fruitland Foundation Fridays is that we continue to raise money and that the amounts go up each and every month. I want to see this new giving program by the students of Fruitland High School be passed on each year for many years to come. I want for each student to begin to have a heart for giving back to the community who has given so much to us.”

Thank you to Jandee and the rest of the Fruitland students who are making strides to give back to their community! You have inspired us all!

Watch Jandee’s Distinguished Student Award Video from KTVB Channel 7

Hospice is About Living Life Fully

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Ron Z.
folder_openHospice Education, Inspiring Stories, Spiritual Care, Working at Heart 'n Home
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comment85 Comments

I am a relatively new employee at Heart ‘n Home. I may also be one of the oldest. If you had asked me a year ago if I would be working for a hospice organization I would have questioned your sanity and said if anything, I was planning for retirement – not a new career. Then, after 10 years of dialysis, my mother said that enough was enough and she ended those treatments and chose instead to become a patient on hospice. Hospice set up a bed in her home on August 7th and Mom died peacefully in her sleep early on the 14th.  She was not on hospice very long, but it was enough for our family to gather around her, care for her, sing her favorite songs, pray with her, love her and let her love us back. I had actually worked with hospice off and on my whole career as a pastor, but this was the first time it was personal. With the help of hospice, Mom was able to live out her life fully to the end and to die well.

Her passing marked the beginning of a crazy and amazing year. I was still not looking for an opportunity to become a spiritual care worker for any hospice organization, but when my wife was given the opportunity to begin a new counseling challenge at the medical clinic in La Pine, Oregon, I thought I would see if there was any jobs available for someone with my spiritual background. I did not have much hope that I would find something in La Pine, so you can understand how amazed I was when I saw an opening there with an organization called “Heart ‘n Home Hospice & Palliative Care, LLC.” I applied for the job and two weeks later I was hired.  Three weeks after my start date, I was in a completely unfamiliar town, being overwhelmed with learning a new job  and the Heart ‘n Home way. I began my spiritual care work the week before Christmas, my wife and I moved the week after Christmas, and we have been adjusting to life in the wild and crazy “city” of La Pine ever since. All together, it has been a pretty steep learning curve.

Just a few days before my mom died, my daughter gave birth to twins – a boy and a girl. My daughter lives on the East Coast and my mom in the West, but she was able to see their pictures before she died, which was a joy for all of us. This year I was able to spend a week with them on the anniversary of their births. They wore me out, but it was a wonderful weariness. Maybe I am seeing things because I want to, but I am convinced that already I can see something of my mother in each of them. He has her smile and she has her love of music.

Those two young lives mean many things to me. Love. Hope. Gratitude. Pride. Remembrance. A fierce determination to protect them, even with my life.  They also remind me that hospice is about living life fully, from birth to end of life and back to birth again.

Ron Z.
La Pine Spiritual Care Provider
Heart ‘n Home Hospice & Palliative Care

 

 

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