By Kathryn Ellen StyersHospice was there for the last two years of Dr.John C.Ellen Jr.s life.
And what a life it was! Kathryns father left Duke University, enlisted in the Army, and stormed the beaches of Normandy on D-Day.After the war, he completed five degrees, then moved to Greenville, N.C., to teach history at East Carolina University.He was a true Southern gentleman, Kathryn saysnever raising his voice.
He and his beloved wife, Dorothy, retired to Covenant Village in Gastonia.When dementia set in, VIA Health Partners was there with extra nursing and CNA services to provide one-on-one medical and personal attention.Social workers tended to his needs and answered the familys questions.They even carried iPads and used an app with bird songs so he could enjoy listening to their melodies.
VIA Health Partners Chaplain Walt Windley IV went from visitor to friend.Dr.Ellen died on August 30, 2017.
He was 96.Hospice RN, social worker, and chaplain were with the family when he breathed his lastat home, at peace.VIA Health Partners has now also served Kathryns mother, Dorothy Ellen.Dorothy was married to John for 56 years.
The talker in the family, she opened a dancewear shop in Greenville, N.C., and gave herself the nickname Dance Tycoon of the East.She smiled that precious smile of hers every time someone brought up Greenville or the dancewear shop she ran for 40 years.Dorothy received hospice care for nearly three years.Nurses typically visited twice a week, social workers and chaplains twice a month.
They enjoyed talking with Dorothy about her dancewear shop and looked at photographs from her past.That team became like family.Steve Harveys daytime talk show and NFL football on TV helped pass the time.
But life could still get lonely.Hospice was a welcome visitor and friend until the time she reunited with her husband.The hospice story doesnt end thereKathryn has been an educator with VIA Health Partners for almost 11 years, visiting hospitals, nursing homes, and doctors offices in Cleveland, Gaston, and Lincoln counties.Her job is to explain the services VIA offers, including when a patient is ready for palliative care or hospice services.
She gives a talk called Make the Most of Every Day.Though the end might be near, she tells her audience that a persons life can be filled with value, integrity, and peace.Nobody can tell that story with more conviction than Kathryn, for she has lived it twice.Hospice has allowed me to be a daughter instead of a caregiver, Kathryn says.
A level of respect and dignity that your loved one deserves is what our hospice is all about.Hospice is hope.For 47 years and counting, VIA Health Partners, formerly Hospice & Palliative Care Charlotte Region, has helped families and loved ones find hope in lifes waning days.Kathryn Styers has felt the love and comfort not once but twiceand now works to help others feel the same.
Publisher: Life Plan Community ( Read More )
