Hospice Stories
My Story – Linda Grant
The news that a loved one has a serious illness is always hard to accept, especially when the loved one is as vibrant, active, and adored as Marion Hood was. At 86, she was mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother and all that translated into babysitter, caretaker, advisor, mentor, and most often, friend. She still lived alone, was still driving, and loved to work in the yard. Life was good. But, after noticing some occasional memory loss and a new tendency to doze off very quickly, Marion’s daughter, Linda Grant, mentioned her concerns to her mother’s doctor just in general conversation. A brain scan was ordered and the results were devastating. Marion had a brain tumor that was already in Stage 4 and few options for treatment were offered. The family struggled to process all that was happening so quickly. Linda remembers her mother saying that while she believed all that was happening was in God’s hands and He would take her when it was His time, she wanted to try treatment to stay with her family here as long as she could. She loved them that much.
So the treatments began, but within two weeks, Marion became so weak that the family struggled to care for her and transport her to the treatments. When the doctor suggested that Hospice and Community Care could provide much needed assistance, Linda was frightened by what she knew that meant. The next day, a representative from Hospice & Community Care came to outline the range of services they provide. Having not been very familiar with Hospice, Linda was both shocked and reassured by the help they could offer the patient and family. Over the next two weeks, Hospice & Community Care provided nursing care, assistance with many medical issues, advice on pain medication and management, counseling with family members, and emergency help even in the middle of the night. Linda recalls fondly the many kind and committed people who came to help her mother and the family in their time of need. She is especially grateful to Hospice & Community Care for helping her family grant her mother’s wish of dying at home. Only a short five weeks from diagnosis, Marion Hood passed away quietly surrounded by the family she loved so much.
But for Linda Grant, her Hospice experience did not end there. Linda and her husband have attended grief support classes and other seminars during the past year, and Marion’s great-grandchildren attended the grief camp for kids. Linda contributed recipes for the upcoming cookbook to honor her mother and participated in the video for the capital campaign. Most recently, on the one year anniversary of her mother’s death, Hospice & Community held a Celebration of Hope service to honor the memories of loved ones who have passed away. Linda and her husband came and heard the dear name of her mother read aloud while they placed an ornament on the Tree of Life in her honor. While she knows the service meant a great deal to others and it was only a coincident, she specifically felt touched that it was held on the one year anniversary of her mother’s death. Linda felt that the service gave her peace and in her grief, that is what she needed most.
The news that a loved one has a serious illness is always hard to accept, especially when the loved one is as vibrant, active, and adored as Marion Hood was. At 86, she was mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother and all that translated into babysitter, caretaker, advisor, mentor, and most often, friend. She still lived alone, was still driving, and loved to work in the yard. Life was good. But, after noticing some occasional memory loss and a new tendency to doze off very quickly, Marion’s daughter, Linda Grant, mentioned her concerns to her mother’s doctor just in general conversation. A brain scan was ordered and the results were devastating. Marion had a brain tumor that was already in Stage 4 and few options for treatment were offered. The family struggled to process all that was happening so quickly. Linda remembers her mother saying that while she believed all that was happening was in God’s hands and He would take her when it was His time, she wanted to try treatment to stay with her family here as long as she could. She loved them that much.
So the treatments began, but within two weeks, Marion became so weak that the family struggled to care for her and transport her to the treatments. When the doctor suggested that Hospice and Community Care could provide much needed assistance, Linda was frightened by what she knew that meant. The next day, a representative from Hospice & Community Care came to outline the range of services they provide. Having not been very familiar with Hospice, Linda was both shocked and reassured by the help they could offer the patient and family. Over the next two weeks, Hospice & Community Care provided nursing care, assistance with many medical issues, advice on pain medication and management, counseling with family members, and emergency help even in the middle of the night. Linda recalls fondly the many kind and committed people who came to help her mother and the family in their time of need. She is especially grateful to Hospice & Community Care for helping her family grant her mother’s wish of dying at home. Only a short five weeks from diagnosis, Marion Hood passed away quietly surrounded by the family she loved so much.
But for Linda Grant, her Hospice experience did not end there. Linda and her husband have attended grief support classes and other seminars during the past year, and Marion’s great-grandchildren attended the grief camp for kids. Linda contributed recipes for the upcoming cookbook to honor her mother and participated in the video for the capital campaign. Most recently, on the one year anniversary of her mother’s death, Hospice & Community held a Celebration of Hope service to honor the memories of loved ones who have passed away. Linda and her husband came and heard the dear name of her mother read aloud while they placed an ornament on the Tree of Life in her honor. While she knows the service meant a great deal to others and it was only a coincident, she specifically felt touched that it was held on the one year anniversary of her mother’s death. Linda felt that the service gave her peace and in her grief, that is what she needed most.