Mountain Valley Hospice Offers Tools to Help Honor Hospice Sabbath
Media Release Oct. 22, 2009
Mount Airy, NC- To honor recipients of and participants in end-of-life care, Mountain Valley Hospice & Palliative Care encourages local churches, clergy and the community to celebrate Hospice Sabbath, a service of reflection and remembrance, on Sunday, Nov. 1, which marks the beginning of National Hospice Month.
To help with remembering those whose lives have been touched by hospice, Mountain Valley Hospice is offering a Hospice Sabbath kit, including a bulletin insert and a candle, and can help organizations line up a speaker for this commemoration event.
The Hospice Sabbath service, celebrated by many hospice organizations, honors the spirituality so integral to end-of-life care. In the past, Hospice Sabbath was often celebrated the third weekend in November, but any Sunday during National Hospice Month is an excellent time to hold this special service, said Sheila Jones, the Director of Marketing at Mountain Valley Hospice.
“There is not an ‘official’ Hospice Sabbath service,” Jones said. “But it’s a great opportunity to bring families together to honor loved ones with a beautiful service”.
Hospice Sabbath can be celebrated in many ways, Jones said. Here are a few ideas, from the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization:
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Place candles at the front of the room in memory of those you have cared for or in honor of professional and family caregivers in your community.
Place candles at the front of the room in memory of those you have cared for or in honor of professional and family caregivers in your community.•Hand out memory stones as participants enter. They can be Small River stones with a sentiment or word of reflection painted in freehand. This can be a wonderful task for a volunteer committee to take on.
Hand out memory stones as participants enter. They can be Small River stones with a sentiment or word of reflection painted in freehand. This can be a wonderful task for a volunteer committee to take on.•Music for the service can be provided by a local musician, sung by a choir or attendees, or even taken from CDs or tapes.
Music for the service can be provided by a local musician, sung by a choir or attendees, or even taken from CDs or tapes.•Invite participants to bring a photo of someone they wish to remember. Attach the photos to poster board and place on easels at the front of the room.
Invite participants to bring a photo of someone they wish to remember. Attach the photos to poster board and place on easels at the front of the room.•Have a memory book at the entrance of the space and allow people to write in the names of those who have died. Read these names during the service.
Have a memory book at the entrance of the space and allow people to write in the names of those who have died. Read these names during the service.•Set up a memory tree and allow people to hang ornaments in honor of their loved ones.
Set up a memory tree and allow people to hang ornaments in honor of their loved ones. •Set up a table with books, brochures, or information about your services or other bereavement resources available to those in your community.
Set up a table with books, brochures, or information about your services or other bereavement resources available to those in your community.•Use one of the ads included with your NHM Planning Guide to create a flyer or program insert for your service.
Use one of the ads included with your NHM Planning Guide to create a flyer or program insert for your service.To pick up a Hospice Sabbath kit, schedule a speaker to help with a service, or obtain more information about the service, call Jones at 336-789-2922.
