Hospice of Wake County

Recently while driving in my car and listening to a local radio station, I heard a commercial for Hospice of Wake County.  The commercial said that you could buy a brick for a donation of $150.  I didn’t think too much about it at the time. 

Then I asked my friends for a list of charitable and volunteer organizations they support.  Martie Todd Sirois told me that her singing group, The Oakwood Waits, is doing a benefit for Hospice of Wake County.  That benefit concert will happen this weekend.  Follow this link for more information: http://www.hospiceofwake.org/event.php?mode=viewEvent&eventID=114

Until now I did not know much about what hospice meant.  I’ve been lucky in that no one in my immediate family has required the care given there.  Had I thought much about it, my guess would have been that hospice must be covered by insurance of some sort.  Now that I’ve have been reading about what Hospice of Wake County does, I understand the need for a benefit concert and brick selling and all of the other fundraising events that take place throughout the year.  You see Hospice of Wake County has a philosophy:

“Every individual deserves the quality of life that he or she wants near life's end. Although we receive reimbursement from Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance, no family is ever denied care due to lack of a payor source.”

You can find this philosophy on its web page at http://www.hospiceofwake.org/pages/14/About-Us/.  You can find so much more information there as well.  For example, the building under construction right now will be the first free-standing hospice in Wake County.  The bricks will be placed in the gardens of that new facility, which will house a minimum of 20 private rooms with space for family member of patients to stay overnight, child-friendly areas, administrative offices, and a lending library with resource materials among other things.  The public dedication of the building will be held on January 9^th.  (See its calendar of events page for details.)

According to its website:

“[Hospice’s] professional staff and trained volunteers provide expert medical care and supportive services to more than 1,500 families each year. To help meet the complex needs of families, these services include: counseling support for families, short-term respite care, spiritual care and counseling, volunteer support, bereavement care, transitional home health care, palliative care, and end-of-life education.”

The amount of services associated with end-of-life care honestly surprised me.  Again, it’s not something that I think about.  Sure, I will occasionally hear a story about one aspect or another of that stage of life, but I have never tried to put it all together.  My guess is that most people have not either.  Most people.

It takes very special, dedicated, compassionate people to do hospice work whether that work is for pay or volunteer.  Every year more than 200 hundred volunteers donate hundreds of hours of their time to help families dealing with the loss of a loved one, struggling with end-of-life care, explaining what is going on to children, etc.  Volunteers are always needed.  You can find out more about how to volunteer here: http://www.hospiceofwake.org/pages/22/Volunteers-Opportunities/.

Returning to the reason that I decided to cover Hospice of Wake County this week – The Oakwood Waits benefit concert is on Saturday (December 13^th) and Martie is a member of the group.  I asked her a few questions about the event, and since she gave such great detailed answers, I won’t edit them at all.

Q. Why did the Oakwood Waits pick Hospice of Wake County for the benefit?  How much money do you hope to raise?

A. The Oakwood Waits, while a professional performing group, still believe in giving back to the community. Now in our 26th season, we perform a benefit concert every year for a worthy cause. Our cause of choice for the past few years has been Hospice of Wake County. Over the past three years, several of our members have lost a mother or father, and Hospice has played a huge role in bringing comfort to their families. Last year we raised over $2,500 for HOWC, and are setting our goal at AT LEAST $2,500. Given the state of our economy, we aren't expecting financial miracles, but every little bit helps. We will also be selling our CDs the night of the concert, and a portion of those proceeds will be given to Hospice as well. Admission to the concert is free, but we are suggesting a $15 minimum donation, and 100% of those proceeds will go directly to HOWC.

Q. Why do you personally think it’s a worthy cause?

A. I personally believe HOWC is a worthy cause because they are a non-profit organization, now in their 30th year of providing comfort to patients that are in the final stages of life, as well as their families, and they need donations to thrive. Hospice medical services are special because the concentration is on care -- not cure. HOWC's mission is to empower individuals, families and communities to embrace meaning at end of life. They provide services from counseling/support for families, to end of life education, and short-term respite care.

Hospice provides many benefits that aren't possible in a traditional health-care setting. Hospice means "I will journey with you." They enable people with terminal illnesses to make decisions about how and where they want to spend the rest of their lives. Hospice care focuses on the unique needs of patients by making them more comfortable - whether it's making sure they get to enjoy their favorite things, putting financial matters into order, or even funeral planning.

It is not possible for just one person or family member to meet all the needs of a seriously ill person. Hospice uses a team approach. They work with professionals and caregivers to make decisions for the good of the patient, and the family.

The benefit concert is:
Sunday, December 13th
7:30 p.m.
Pullen Memorial Baptist Church
1801 Hillsborough St.
Raleigh, NC 27605

our website is: www.oakwoodwaits.com

We have sung twice at the White House, are frequent entertainers at the Raleigh Executive Mansion, and have also been featured in "Our State" magazine, as well as on Deana Vassar's Sunday evening program, "Preview!" on WCPE Classical radio.

I want to thank Martie for taking the time to answer my questions.  I hope that the benefit concert is a success and exceeds the fundraising goal set this year despite the economy.

As always, I am open to suggestions for more Triangle Charities and Volunteer Organizations.  Please let me know if there is one that you’d like to see covered here.