Name: Carolyn Washington, Care Center Hospice Aide How long have you worked here? 14 years. What made you decide to work here? I liked hospice care better because…it’s different. You learn more about different types of care for people going through the dying phase. I just like hospice. How had you heard of Angela Hospice? The funny thing is I was riding by and I said, “Oh, Angela Hospice.” I came on a weekend and asked this guy if they were hiring and he told me to come back Monday. I came back that Monday and met with someone and put in an application. They hired me right on the spot. What’s a typical day like for you? Busy. Really busy. Time goes by really quickly. What is your favorite part about working at Angela Hospice? The staff, its good teamwork, the patients, and the families. Carolyn (left) works with patients as an aide. What is one of your favorite memories from your time at Angela Hospice? In the old Care Center there was one pa...

This week, the Angela Hospice Choir received LeadingAge Michigan’s Group Volunteer of the Year Award! In honor of the recognition, we chatted with Angela Hospice’s Director of Volunteer Services, Syndie Best, about the nomination process, why she thought they would be a good group to nominate, and how she told the group they won. To read more about the choir check out the volunteer spotlight we recently ran on choir director Evelyn Wojkowiak . The choir at the LeadingAge Michigan awards. How did you find out about the LeadingAge Michigan awards? Marti [Coplai, Angela Hospice Executive Director] forwarded me the information. She knew about them. Not a lot of hospices have choirs, so when she found out that we have a choir she said, "Hey, you should see if you can nominate them." What was the nomination process like? LeadingAge only does one group award so they wanted to know the history of the group, what it is they do, how long they’ve been doing it, what...

Angela Hospice is selling a limited number of tickets for the "Winner Takes All" Raffle. The complete list of prizes is featured below. You could win them ALL, so don't miss out! To order your ticket(s), print the flyer below or call (734) 464-7810.

Name: Sarah Shareef How long have you been a volunteer? Two years. What areas do you work in/what sort of tasks do you do as a volunteer? Works the ice cream socials. What made you decide to become a volunteer? I volunteered at Beaumont Hospital before and I wanted something that was a little closer to home. Someone from my sister’s school recommended coming here and I did. What is your favorite part about volunteering? I guess just trying to make someone’s day, even when they haven’t had the best day and they just need that little way to make them feel better. Especially when I’m doing the ice cream socials, it’s like they put a smile on someone’s face. Sarah works the ice cream socials in the Care Center. What is one of your favorite stories or memories from volunteering? There was this gentleman that was telling me about his childhood and how they’d ride their bikes up to the gas station that was down the street, and they would go buy an ice c...

Name: Debbie Brewer, Intake Coordinator How long have you worked here? Nine years this July. What made you decide to work here? I had a friend that had worked here and I had been going back to school to be a medical assistant. I got my certification in phlebotomy and medical billing, and my friend told me there was a position opening up as an intake coordinator.  I’ve always enjoyed working with people and I felt that I needed to have a change in my career…I felt that I needed to do something more in my life. How had you heard of Angela Hospice? My father was an Angela Hospice patient in 1995. We had Angela Hospice for three days before he died, and the three days were wonderful. They were short but they were wonderful. It was a very good experience so that made me think that maybe I should switch careers in my life. What’s a typical day like for you? I’m on the phone a lot. We gather information about patients and we’re also explaining to patients’ fami...

Evelyn (right) with some fellow choir members. For volunteer Evelyn Wojkowiak the Angela Hospice choir is much more than just a group that sings together a few times a month; they’re family. “We’re a very open family,” Evelyn said. “I think the residents and their families and friends kind of feel the love that we have, so we’re able to give that love to them through our music, and we get a lot of love back. I think that’s the best part, giving and receiving the love.” Evelyn has been sharing the love for nearly 20 years as the group’s director, a position she got by default. When she joined the choir, after seeing an ad in the newspaper, she had no intention of becoming the group’s director. But then the position opened up and Evelyn was the most qualified. Plus, she had a keyboard. “They’re going, ‘You’re working on your music degree. Here, you be the leader,’” she laughed. “I’m like, ‘I don’t wanna be the leader!’ And they said I was the only one qualified.” ...