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Hospice Honors
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January 2025

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Volunteer Opportunities
May the New Year start with fresh joys and a life filled with peace. May you experience warmth and togetherness and prosperity too. Happy New Year!
Notes from Friends Hospice of the Valleys serves hundreds of patients every year. We honor them by sharing their stories. They remind us every day of the meaning and purpose of our work and that human connection is at the heart of the hospice experience. The following are notes Hospice of the Valleys has received from the families of patients that we have been privileged to provide hospice care. "Our family will forever be indebted to Hospice of the valleys for all the care and compassion you extended to my mom. You are living, breathing Angels on Earth." "Thank you for the hope, comfort, support and love you gave me during and after my wife's death. I am forever grateful." "Thank you for all you do. Your continued contact throughout this past year has been greatly appreciated." THANK YOU!
Celebrate the Heart of Volunteering Become a Hospice Volunteer Hospice is about family and community... And volunteers bring heart to hospice. Our team always had the need for volunteers in patient support, music, veteran to veteran support, fundraising, administrative support and more. Hold a Hand-Give a Hug-Touch a Heart. Becoming a hospice volunteers is a meaningful and rewarding experience. You can make a difference! *Seeking bi-lingual volunteers for patient support and music* Hospice of the Valleys: Canyon Lake, Fallbrook, Hemet, Homeland, Lake Elsinore, Menifee, Murrieta, Nuevo, Perris, Quail Valley, Romoland, San Jacinto, Sun City, Temecula, Wildomar, Winchester Please contact Chrisy Lawless, Volunteer Manager 951-200-7800 or CLawless@hovsc.org for more information. You may also refer to our website page HospiceoftheValleys.org for new training updates.
Seeking Fundraising Volunteers - You can make a difference - Outgoing and Self-Motivated - Detail-Oriented and Good organization skills - Ability to Interact Positively with Guests and a Team. If this sounds like you, we'd love to talk with you about how you can help! Please contact: Chrisy Lawless 951-200-7800 | CLawless@Hovsc.org
FROM HERE TO THERE... Join us for our monthly workshop, From Here to There, which covers topics focused on navigating the later years of life. January: Meet Your Hospice Team Let us introduce you to the interdisciplinary approach of hospice care. Meet our team that consists of a board-certified hospice and palliative care doctor, RN, social worker, spiritual care and home health aide. We'll answer your questions and share how we help. Friday, January 31st | 9:00-10:00 Hospice of the Valleys 25240 Hancock Avenue, Ste 120 Murrieta, CA 92562 Space is limited, Please RSVP by 1/26 to 951-200-7800 Co-Sponsored by: Visiting Angels.
Mary's Bench (Part 5) Mike Patton Bereavement Counselor/Spiritual Care There is a spiritual aspect to grief that is as mysterious as it can be comforting. As I continue to grieve the death of our dear friend, my heart lies open to a variety of possibilities and deeply held beliefs. What do we do with the probing questions of where is Mary now? Or what is Mary doing now? Or does she have any awareness of what is happening here and now? From the time of my earliest memories I believed that the dead simply moved on to heaven and their journey of becoming fully human was completed... made in the image of God. After we held the dedication of Mary's Bench on Treasure Island, the next morning (on December 16th, Mary's birthday) there was a ceramic angel placed on the table between the two seats. I do not know where it came from or who put it there. It is just there and everyone who has sat on Mary's bench since the dedication has done so in the presence of the ceramic angel (pictured below). The range of possibilities is endless! I love that the connection I am working on with our friend who has died is, on the one hand, completely a work of my imagination and, on the other, a tapping into the experience of my memories. I often hear the tension of these two extremes in our bereavement groups. Almost every widow or widower I have met talks to their deceased spouse. And why not? Keeping a relationship alive while embarking on a new life without their physical presence is not a bad plan. Personally, I thank God for my childlike faith in this area! My best friend, Bill, was present via video for the dedication ceremony. His relationship with Mary before they moved back to Michigan and before she died, will live on in my memory as one of the finest marriages I have ever gotten to know. Their love for each other was greater than all the obstacles that parenting, finances, preferences and personality differences throw at all marriages. I miss their presence in our life... so I try to honor the memory of their good marriage. January is the tenth month after Mary's death. Grieving her death has given me many meaningful moments that have profoundly affected my life, none of them without a little bit of sadness in the experience. I continue to thank God, as I understand Him, for the beautiful friendship we enjoyed and am working to continue to enjoy.
Stress Management Strategies for the New Year Leslee B. Cochrane, MD. Executive Medical Director It has been said that there are two things which are unavoidable in life: "death and taxes". Both death and taxes are associated with significant amounts of stress and although it is not possible to eliminate stress from our lives it is important to recognize the significant negative impacts chronic stress can have on our health. As we begin a New Year, now is a good time to learn more about how to better manage chronic stress, Our bodies have been hard-wired to deal with life-threatening situations through a built in physiological response mechanism commonly been referred to the "fight or flight" response. These physiological mechanisms are vital in a life or death situation; but when these hormones are continuously triggered by non-life threatening every-day situations such as work deadlines or financial pressures, they cause multiple adverse health events such as: • Heart disease including hypertension, strokes and heart attacks Depression, anxiety and difficulty sleeping • Muscle aches and pains and headaches • Digestive problems such as acid indigestion • Weight gain and increased risk for diabetes Each person reacts differently to stressful situations based on a variety of factors including their background, genetics and past experiences with traumatic events. Below are several healthy habits to help you deal with stress: 1. Exercise - Regular exercise is very effective in lowering stress, while also helping to control your weight and boost your immune system. 2. Laughter-Laughing helps reduce stress and can boost endorphins which can enhance your sense of well-being and help to boost your immune system. 3. Sleep- Having a good night of rest will help recharge your batteries and better prepare you to face the challenges of the day. 4. Connecting with friends and family- Time spent with friends in the development of strong social relationships is a great buffer against stress. 5. Assert yourself - Learn the art of saying "no". Sometimes we are stressed because we have overcommitted and are unable to keep up with own unrealistic expectations. 6. Meditation and prayer - Spend time thinking and praying instead of worrying. Practice gratitude daily. 7. Music-Listening to music or better yet playing an instrument has well known stress relieving properties. 8. Avoid the tyranny of the urgent - Avoid the temptation to over-schedule your day. I hope this information helps you to better manage stress and wish you a very Happy and Healthy New Year!
Hiring Nurses We're hiring Nurses! If you're looking for a career that is as rewarding professional as it is personally, look no further. We offer positions for nurses who will have 24/8 access to a medical director with only a 12-patient caseload. Providing an excellent work/life balance, Hospice of the Valleys is a 5-star hospice and the recipient of the Inland Empire Top Workplace from 2014-2023.
Volunteer Corner Wishing you a year of joy, peace and abundant blessings! Looking forward to the special moments this New Year will bring. Happy 2025!
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