Ecumen’s Seth Kalhagen Wants To Change Your Perception of Hospice
Before Seth Kalhagen got into hospice work, he was a missionary. As it turns out, that was good training.
Thanksgiving Is a Good Time To Be Nosy About Your Family Health History
When everyone is together for Thanksgiving, it’s an ideal time to talk turkey about the family health history.
Ecumen Hospice Team Honors a Client’s Last Wish in a Heartfelt Singing Goodbye
Hazel Erickson of Litchfield was an independent and strong-will woman who loved her family, her church and her community. She also really loved to dance and was always dressed to the nines.
Hazel never let on that she was dying and in intense pain. She kept going to church as usual, and the folks there had no idea she was in hospice — or even sick. That’s how she wanted it. She just kept living gratefully each day.
Hazel had meticulously made all her funeral plans, including a wish to have someone sing at her service. But she hadn’t selected who that would be.
A team from Ecumen Home Care & Hospice had been caring for her in her home since April. When Hazel died, the family asked Hospice Nurse Shelly Hanks if she had any ideas about who could sing at the funeral.
Shelly told them that Judy Loecken, a social worker at Ecumen Home Care & Hospice, sings to all her clients. When Shelly asked Judy if she would do it, Judy was conflicted. On the one hand, she had never sung in public. On the other hand, hospice is all about honoring last wishes. So Judy said she would do it if some of her colleagues would join her.
And that’s how the “Ecumen Sisters” happened.
Five women on the Ecumen Home Care & Hospice staff in Litchfield who had cared for Hazel agreed to do it — because they were pretty sure that’s what Hazel would want them to do.
Sandy Dougherty, the RN Clinical Director; Nicole Larson, the Volunteer Coordinator; and Michaela Nelson, the Massage Therapist; joined Shelly and Judy. When the funeral home wondered how to list them in the program, Hazel’s daughter Shelia came up with the name “Ecumen Sisters.”
The day of the funeral, the Ecumen Sisters stood in the balcony of the church and sang “On Eagles Wings.”
Reportedly, the funeral director said they “sounded like angels.”
Sandy says she’s flattered by the compliment, but she’s still tentative about the group’s singing ability. But one thing she is absolutely sure of: “I know we would have made Hazel proud.”
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November is National Hospice and Palliative Care Month. This month, the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, and other organizations are teaming up to encourage citizens to increase their understanding and awareness of end of life care.
This month, the Ecumen Changing Aging Blog is featuring posts surrounding hospice, palliative care and the wonderful work they contribute.
Ecumen Century Club: Happy 103rd Birthday Katherine (Kay) Coventry
Ecumen honors Katherine (Kay) Coventry, a resident of Ecumen Lakeshore in Duluth, who is 103.
Top 5 Blog Posts — November 23
Did you miss last week's most-read Changing Aging blog posts? Ecumen's online visitors found these articles most interesting:
Sales Office Now Open for Zvago Glen Lake Co-op in Minnetonka
Zvago Glen Lake Cooperative, a new senior housing co-op planned for the north shore of Glen Lake in Minnetonka, has opened a sales office and showroom in walking distance from the site.
National LeadingAge CEO Larry Minnix Speaks To Ecumen Board of Trustees
LeadingAge President and CEO Larry Minnix, in his last speaking engagement before he retires, visited Ecumen and told the Ecumen Board of Trustees “working with people like you has been an unbelievable experience.”
Duluth Woman Earns President’s Volunteer Service Award for Her Work at Ecumen Lakeshore
Mavis Keller, a veteran volunteer at Ecumen Lakeshore in Duluth, was surprised last week in a ceremony honoring her with the President’s Volunteer Service Award.
Honoring National Hospice and Palliative Care Month
November is National Hospice and Palliative Care Month. This month, the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, and other organizations are teaming up to encourage citizens to increase their understanding and awareness of end of life care.
One Vet’s Story: 193 Days in Combat Across Europe
Ray Kratzke, now a resident of Riverfront Manor in Pelican Rapids, Minn., was just 20 years old when he opened a letter in the mail that said he was being drafted in to the US Army. Soon he would be landing on Utah Beach and spending the next six months in combat across Europe. This is his story.
You can read these articles and more at www.ecumen.org.
Volunteers Learn End of Life Transition Can Be Beautiful Experience
The truly unique, special and eye opening experience of being a hospice volunteer is discussed in the Mankato Free Press' article.
National LeadingAge CEO Larry Minnix Speaks To Ecumen Board of Trustees
LeadingAge President and CEO Larry Minnix, in his last speaking engagement before he retires, visited Ecumen yesterday and told the Ecumen Board of Trustees “working with people like you has been an unbelievable experience.
Duluth Woman Earns President’s Volunteer Service Award for Her Work at Ecumen Lakeshore
Mavis Keller, a veteran volunteer at Ecumen Lakeshore in Duluth, was surprised last week in a ceremony honoring her with the President’s Volunteer Service Award.
Honoring National Hospice and Palliative Care Month
November is National Hospice and Palliative Care Month. This month, the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, and other organizations are teaming up to encourage citizens to increase their understanding and awareness of end of life care.
Top 5 Blog Posts — November 16
Did you miss last week's most-read Changing Aging blog posts? Ecumen's online visitors found these articles most interesting:
7 Powerful Photographs of Terminally Ill Patients Living Out Their Final Wishes
The Ambulance Wish Foundation, a Dutch nonprofit, is helping those in hospice experience one final request. The organization's main message states, "Positive end-of-life experiences are far too important to pass up."
One Vet’s Story: 193 Days in Combat Across Europe
Ray Kratzke, now a resident of Riverfront Manor in Pelican Rapids, Minn., was just 20 years old when he opened a letter in the mail that said he was being drafted in to the US Army. Soon he would be landing on Utah Beach and spending the next six months in combat across Europe. This is his story.
Ecumen CEO Kathryn Roberts Assumes Board Chair Role at LeadingAge
Kathryn Roberts, President and CEO of Ecumen, was sworn in last week as Chair of the Board of Directors of LeadingAge, the national association of not-for-profit aging services providers.
Randi Handegaard Celebrates 40 Years at Sunnyside Care Center
On Nov. 5, 1975, Randi Handegaard took her first job at Sunnyside Care Center in Lake Park, Minn., as a newly minted occupational therapy assistant. She blinked, and now it’s 40 years later. She’s still at Sunnyside as the Activity Director — still loving her job every day.
Ecumen Communities Prepare for Veteran’s Day Tributes
Veterans Day is a special time at Ecumen communities. Numerous Ecumen residents are veterans with rich stories about their military service.
You can read these articles and more at www.ecumen.org.