“The people here, in the organization, are just great to be around. Besides working with my clients, I also volunteer in the office once a week, answering phones, just to be around them.” ~ Stuart Wetherbe – In Home Support Volunteer.
One of the most intriguing, and least talked about, parts of the California Eroica is it’s support of Hospice of San Luis Obispo County (Hospice SLO). Hospice SLO is something of a rarity. Founded in 1977, it’s an all volunteer, non-medical service based, non-profit hospice organization. It’s on fairly recently that not just our medical community but also out society as a whole has started to openly discuss things like palliative care and home hospice. Establishing a hospice organization in the 70’s was very, very much against the norm. The services they provide, which includes support groups, grief counseling, in-home support, taking care of client pets, are all provided entirely by volunteers. I wanted to talk to a few of them, to see why they would take on such difficult and emotionally demanding work. I came away impressed by their dedication, thoughtfulness and care they feel for not just their clients, but for Hospice SLO itself.
Tani Smida – Pet Peace of Mind Volunteer
Tani Smida has been a breeding and boarding birds for nearly 30 years in the San Luis Obispo area. She recently got a call from one of her friends, asking for help on behalf of Hospice SLO. A pair of Macaws had been placed in San Lois Obispo’s animal shelter when their owner went into hospice care. The shelter was ill equipped to care for them. They were under danger of being put to sleep. Would she help? The answer was yes.
Why she volunteers:
“There are 2 reasons we are here on Earth. One is to learn and the other is to give back. Service is such a gift to the giver. You walk away feeling like you’ve gotten more than you have given out.”
What she has taken away from volunteering with Hospice SLO:
“The beauty of it is that I’ve had experience with hospice, watching a friend pass away. I took it as quite a compliment that they trusted me with these two birds. It’s been an honor.”
Jennifer Everett – In-Home Support Volunteer
Jennifer Everett first came to Hospice SLO with her son, Oliver. Her husband, Todd, had been diagnosed with a highly aggressive cancer and she brought Oliver in for counseling. Oliver was 4 years old. He spent nearly 2 years in Hospice SLO’s counseling program. Jennifer herself took a “On Year To Live” class to help her understand and appreciate what her husband was going through. On the dedication wall outside of Hospice SLO’s office there is a tile bearing her husband’s name and the message “Oliver’s Dad”. “When I came around the corner and saw that for the first time, I thought that was the most perfect thing he could have put. We come here all the time to sit and remember Todd.”
Why she volunteers:
“Hospice SLO was a huge help to us during my husband’s illness. My son Oliver got nearly 2 years of free counseling. I took a ‘Last Year of Your Life’ class. After Todd passed away, I wanted to give back. My background is in childbirth. I believe that we should be born in our homes, surrounded by our friends and family. I think we should die that way as well. Birth and death are so similar. There is alot of waiting, introspection and emotions in both.”
What she has taken away from volunteering with Hospice SLO:
“Everybody comes into it with an idea of what hospice will be like. I know I did, having been through it with my husband. But every person is different. There is no textbook for it it goes. We, the volunteers, have to roll with it, and honor the fact that everybody’s experience is unique. I have to remember to support their process as best as I can. I need to be able to facilitate their journey.”
“Carpe diem. Explore every day and every person. Don’t just sit back and let life happen.”
Stuart Wetherbe – In-Home Support Volunteer
Stuart Wetherbe moved to San Luis Obispo 2 years ago from the East Coast for his work, which is being a full time care giver for the elderly. He found himself with free time. “I had friends who had done hospice work, and they spoke very highly of the experience.” Hospice SLO was attractive to him because it was unique, an all volunteer, non-profit, non-medical hospice. “The people here, in the organization, are just great to be around.”
Why he volunteers:
“Dad had cancer. It came out of remission. I got a call, “Dad’s dying.”. I realized that we’d never been close and I determined that I wanted to see him, tell him that we were OK. That I loved him. When I walked into his room, he opened his eyes, put his arms up, gave me a hug, and then fell back into unconsciousness. All the roles we’d played in our lives melted away. There was just this being, laying there, and we could just be there with each other taking comfort. No words. No roles. It moved me to tears.
Three days later, I was sitting with him. Words weren’t necessary. I sat with him, held his hand.There was a faint squeeze of his hand in acknowledgement and he took his last breathe. It was one of the most profound experiences of my life.”
What he has taken away from volunteering with Hospice SLO:
“Care giving is something that I want to be doing. I look at it as a way of enriching myself. There is a way that I learn and grow through this practice. I learn how to help people with very serious life issues. I tend to see myself in other people, so by helping others, I get to explore myself more. I believe that as much compassion as I have for myself is as much as I have for another person.”
Chantal Donahue – Pet Peace of Mind Volunteer
Chantal came to the United States from the Philippines almost 30 years ago and settled in San Luis Obispo with her husband. “SLO is the happiest place on Earth. How lucky could I have been, to come here?”, she tells me. Her current charge is Buddy, an elderly cocker spaniel. “Visiting my client, bringing Buddy to her, it feels like I am taking care of my Mother, my Aunt, my Uncle, who I couldn’t be there for in the Philippines when they were ill.”
Why she volunteers:
“I’ve always loved animals. We always had them in the Philippines. I also took care of my Aunts and Uncles. We are there for people’s birth and death. That’s a part of our culture. When my son went to college 2 years ago, I needed a purpose. Hospice SLO became that. The way they respect the older people, take care of them, it is very much an extension of my own culture.”
What she has taken away from volunteering with Hospice SLO:
“I feel blessed to be living here, in this place, in this country. I want to give back. I can’t give money, but I can give myself. That is much more important. Volunteering, for me, it makes me feel joyful. By helping others, we heal ourselves.”