COVID-19 has changed the way we experience and grieve the death of a loved one. We may not have been able to be by the bedside, families and friends can’t gather to mourn together, memorial services are postponed. In this webinar we will explore how COVID-19 complicates how we grieve, look at strategies to cope and explore ways to find meaning through rituals.
Featured Presenter: Nina Page, RP
Nina Page has been a pastoral, palliative volunteer at Allendale Long Term Care for over 20 years and in 2012 accepted the position of Chaplain. Nina was ordained a Vocational Deacon in the Anglican Church in 2012. She studied at the Toronto School of Pastoral Care and was accepted into the College of Psychotherapists in 2016.
In 2016, Nina started as a volunteer co-facilitator for Acclaim Health’s Spousal Loss Bereavement Support Group and was offered a permanent part time position as a Bereavement Counsellor in 2017. Since then she has been part of the team of Hospice and Bereavement Counsellors at Acclaim Health and in 2019 was invited to be a Bereavement and Spiritual Care Counsellor.
Nina lives in Milton with husband John and 2 “Furbabies” They have two sons, 4 grandchildren and 3 step-grandchildren.
Townsend Smith Hospice Foundation is thrilled and extremely proud to be recognized as 𝐍𝐨𝐭 𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐢𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫 through the Milton Chamber of Commerce. This is the inaugural year for this award and that makes it even more special. This award shows the amazing support from the community and strengthens our resolve to continue to bring a hospice to North Halton. Thank you to the Milton Chamber and Selection Committee for such recognition and this esteemed award.
[NOTE: View our acceptance from the 8:45 minute mark]
Twenty years ago the best friend of my father, Stan Croll, was diagnosed with cancer; the disease progressed and towards the end he was admitted to Ian Anderson House in Oakville. My father, an Oakville resident, visited him regularly and was so impressed by the care given that he kept going to Anderson House after his friend had passed away. Stan became a faithful volunteer there doing whatever odd job needed to be done and chatting to the residents. He believed in Anderson House and the ministry it provided to both the residents and their families; indeed my mother often joked that far from being retired, he now had a new job!
My father volunteered there for years but was himself diagnosed with cancer in the spring of 2007. Even so, Stan continued his volunteer work until he was no longer able to do so. As with his best friend, the disease progressed and like his friend, he too was admitted to Anderson House. It was then that my family and I truly appreciated what Anderson House does and what it means. Up to that time my family had been on the “giving side” as it were; now we were on the “receiving side”. It is almost impossible to convey what my father’s being there meant to us as they not only provided exceptional care for my Dad but also for the rest of us as well. They made the seemingly impossible to cope with possible.
As a thirty year resident of Milton and a minister, I am well aware of the need for a hospice to serve the people of Milton and Halton Hills. It would truly be so wonderful if the families of our communities could receive the same wonderful care closer to home that my family received in our time of need. – Shawn C.
Janet Townsend realized the need for a hospice when her husband Ron was diagnosed with lung cancer. “His wish was to die at home. However he also wanted us to know that should caring for him become too much physically and/or emotionally, he wanted to be placed in a hospice,” she said. Ron Townsend served as district chief of the Milton Fire Department.
There was no hospice in North Halton (Milton, or Halton Hills), or availability at other area hospices. The illness hit the family hard. “Our children Matt and Amy as well as daughter-in-law Tammy were unable to have time with their father. Our grandson, Jake could not have time with his poppa. I did not have the time to be his wife. Those connections were lost and we all missed them so very much,” she said.
The friends and family of Tessie Smith, a local Tai Chi instructor had a similar idea. The two groups began working together and formed the Townsend Smith Foundation. “Our goal is to build a place where families can be together with their loved ones as they begin their end-of-life journey in a gentle, dignified way. Everyone should be able to have that time together, to just be there for each other,” Townsend said.
The Townsend Smith Foundation is a registered charity with the Canada Revenue Agency. It is guided by a volunteer board of directors. The foundation has embarked on a capital campaign to fund the building, and equipment for a 10-bed residential hospice in North Halton.
