Volunteer Spotlight: Dennis Bostwick

-
A weekly feature where you can get to know some of our volunteers.

Name: Dennis Bostwick

How long have you been a volunteer?
Four years

What areas do you work in/what tasks do you do as a volunteer?
Patient care in the Care Center, nursing homes and home care

 What made you decide to become a volunteer?
Sister Pat (Hergenroether) was head of Spiritual Care at the time (she’s now retired) and she knew I was retired. We've been friends for years and years. I saw her and she said, “I have just the thing for you now that you've retired.” And she told me about this and I said, “I can't do that, are you kidding?” And she goes, “You can do this.” She sent me the information and I looked it over. I mentioned it to my wife and she said, "You'd be good at that." I said, "I'd be good at that? I don't know." I said a little prayer and said if you think I should do this I'm with you. So I took the classes and I liked the enthusiasm of Syndie. And I thought, this is going to be kind of cool. So I did it and it is pretty cool. 

 What is your favorite part about volunteering?
Seeing a patient smile. Whether it's fooling with them or telling them a joke or holding their hand or something. I mean they wouldn't be in hospice if everything in their life was OK. So to see them smile, that's pretty cool. Especially when you see people that are lonely. That's the part that tugs at me. When they don't have anybody coming to see them, or they're stuck in a nursing home and for whatever reason they are by themselves, or their family doesn't come, and you walk in and they light up – that's why I do it.

 What is one of your favorite stories or memories from volunteering?
When you get a chance for someone to ever tell you that you meant something to someone in their family, or whatever their relation was, that's cool. 

(Dennis has two examples of this. One is a voicemail he saved from a patient’s family and the other is a letter Angela Hospice received from the family of a patient he had been spending time with.)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Room for Brian

-
Image
   Angela Hospice's donor-supported Care Center     provided Brian with the care he needed -- and        brought his family peace of mind. The Angela Hospice Care Center has always been a community-driven labor of love. From its construction in the early 1990s; to its expansion a decade and a half later; and right through to the present, where day-to-day operations are supported by the generosity of donors and friends – the Care Center is a rare and valuable community resource made possible by Angela Hospice’s caring supporters. It’s also a godsend for families like the Wilson’s. When their son came to stay with them over Christmas last year, the brain tumor he had been determined to fight for nearly 11 years began to overcome him. At 30 years old, Brian was 6’2” and his disease had progressed to the point that he could no longer walk on his own. How would his parents take care of him in their home that was not wheelchair accessible? The Angela Hospice Care Center prov
Read more

Volunteer Spotlight: Ingrid Lasley

-
Image
Name: Ingrid Lasley How long have you been a volunteer? I started volunteering about 2 ½ years ago. What areas do you work in/what sort of tasks do you do as a volunteer? I cover the receptionist desk for lunch hours, which includes telephone calls. I have covered Tree of Life shifts for the past 2 years and plan to volunteer again this season. I also have been involved in numerous mailings and last year’s Walk of Remembrance. What made you decide to become a volunteer? I stopped working a few years ago and decided I could use my spare time best by volunteering. I am enjoying every minute! Why Angela Hospice? Ingrid with fellow volunteer Geri Orlowski My mother passed away in 2012 in Buffalo, NY, and after witnessing the treatment my mother received at a hospice facility there, I knew I wanted to be part of such a kind and caring group. What is your favorite part about volunteering? I have enjoyed meeting so many people who have demonstrated so many ways one can g
Read more

Sweet, Precious Time

-
Image
Debbie Bennett was called to be a steadfast wife to husband Thomas and a devoted mother to their  children, Christopher, Kelly, and Robin. She has relied on God to get through the hard times her family has faced, and has been grateful that Angela Hospice was there too, when she really needed support. Robin & Chris In 1989, at the age of 12, Christopher, her oldest child, was diagnosed with a rare neurological disease called Friedreich's Ataxia (FA). Chris was a smart and funny music-lover, and accomplished artist who was beloved by his family and many friends. By his junior year in high school, he began to use a wheelchair. As with many diseases of the nervous system, there has never been a cure or effective treatment for FA. Debbie and her family enlisted Angela Hospice's help to care for Chris before he passed away in 2004. He was just 26 years old. "I didn't know what to expect...hospice comes in and does so much more than care for a sick person, they
Read more