Mr. Beagle with his beautiful granddaughter. He reunited with her after telling his hospice chaplain that seeing her again was the most important thing to him.
We see it again and again, without fail. Often, bucket-list wishes are about people and relationships. We saw it again recently when a grandfather in our care expressed his deepest desire.
Sally, Mr. Beagle’s Hospice Care Plus chaplain, asked him what was most important to him during one of her visits. (We ask this of all our patients, regularly). He said breathing was most important, because difficulty breathing is his biggest challenge. But his wife urged him to think more carefully about his answer.
“Now, now,” she said. “There’s something much more important to you than that.”
She clearly thinks the world of him, too.
He paused for a few seconds, until tears filled his eyes. Then, he told our chaplain that there is someone special he really needs to see.
His three-year-old granddaughter lives 4 hours away. He and his wife raised her until she was 14 months old. He hadn’t seen her since. He adores her and, in that moment that he told Sally about her, it was clear that being with her is definitely what’s most important to him right now.
Thankfully, his team–Sally, his nurse Paige, and his social worker, Jackie–are committed to honoring these bucket-list wishes for patients and families. They went to work–contacting family members, asking questions–and discovered that the granddaughter and her parents very much wanted to visit, but money was tight and they weren’t sure how to pay for the fuel to get there and back.
So, we dug into our special fund for bucket-list wishes and found enough to provide a $50 gift card to fund the trip.
It was worth every penny, and then some. Just look at these pictures. Not only is it clear that he is at peace now that he’s with her again, but also that this child adores her grandfather. What an incredible moment to have captured, so that, in the years to come, she will have something to remember the special trip she took to see the grandfather who couldnt’ rest until he saw her again.
Wishes like these are made possible exclusively through donations from people like you.
Help us celebrate National Hospice and Palliative Care Day by donating or volunteering with Hospice Care Plus at #WeHonorLife.
Hospice Care Plus empowers those we serve to enjoy the highest quality of life, respecting their values, beliefs, needs, and goals through specialized care, education, resources, and grief support.
Our Service Area:
Our Home Hospice and Home Palliative Care programs serve you, wherever you call home, in the Kentucky counties of Estill, Jackson, Lee, Madison, Owsley, and Rockcastle.
Our inpatient care facility, the Compassionate Care Center, and administrative offices are located in Richmond, Kentucky.
Recent News:
Give a Heart for Hospice in February
Celebrating Teresa Turner’s Retirement
News & Events
Give a Heart for Hospice in February
During the month of February, several local banks and businesses are hosting the annual “Hearts for Hospice” fundraising event. When you visit the lobby or drive-through of a participating bank or business, you will have the opportunity to request a memorial heart for a donation of at least one dollar. Donors write their name or…
Celebrating Teresa Turner’s Retirement
On January 31, Teresa Turner, APRN, will retire from Hospice Care Plus after more than 24 years of service. An open-house retirement party will be held Friday, January 31, between 12 PM and 2 PM at Hospice Care Plus & Compassionate Care Center on 350 Isaacs Lane in Richmond. All are invited to drop by…
Journaling Through Grief: A New Grief Support Series
Hospice Care Plus is offering a new grief support series called Journaling Through Grief, starting Jan. 14 and ending June 24. The group will meet every second and fourth Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. at the Madison County Public Library in Berea. Enrollment is limited to 12 and is open to anyone in the community. Register…
Grief and Loss During Holidays and Milestones
Holidays can be a uniquely difficult time for those grieving the loss of a loved one.
You may find that grief will surface over and over, or that milestone events or holidays pull you back into your grief, or you may be surprised that grief is missing on these special days. Our grief comes in many forms and doesn’t follow a calendar.