Latest news with #HospiceCare
CTV News
22-07-2025
- Health
- CTV News
Rubber duck race supports The Hospice Windsor-Essex for third year in a row
The third annual rubber duck race is set to take place this weekend. A total of 5,000 rubber ducks will race for charity on Friday, in support of The Hospice Windsor-Essex. At 6:30 p.m., the waddling of rubber will be released from a ladder of a Lakeview fire truck at Lakeview Park West Beach along the canal. The public can purchase $20 raffle tickets to enter the race. If your raffle ticket matches the first-place finisher, you will win the grand prize of $20,000. Proceeds from the race will directly support care for hospice patients and families in our community. Since 1979, The Hospice has provided compassionate, clinical, end-of-life care for members of our community. With only partial government funding, the organization relies on the generosity of donors from the public and private sector. In addition, community volunteers continue to provide vital care for patients and their loved ones. Sarah Overton is the manager of community and volunteer engagement at The Hospice Windsor-Essex and part of the planning committee for the Rubber Duck Race. Overton is enthusiastic about the community support the race has garnered over the last three years because of the important impact it has at The Hospice. 'It is a community event, and it supports our hospice community here,' said Overton. 'And it ensures that we're able to provide care at no cost to our community members when they need us most.' If you'd like to grab a ticket for the race, you can do so here. More information about the Hospice Rubber Duck Race is available here.
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Camp Courage teaches understanding life's end to those just beginning theirs
There's nothing like a good water balloon fight to clear one's head. Especially when your head still has bits of rubber clinging to it from your new friend's thrown balloon that hit you a few seconds earlier. But it wasn't all water balloons at Camp Courage Thursday. Held at Hendrick Hospice Care, the long-running annual camp each summer teaches children strategies on how to process the loss of a loved one. 'Our purpose is to acknowledge and affirm the reality of children's grief,' Adrianna Golden-Smith, camp director, said. 'Kiddos experience loss and the wide breadth of all that comes with that experience in small bodies but in large ways.' The week-long course is open to children who are entering the third grade to high school seniors. This year's camp featured about 40 kids. To process grief, you need to understand it. Camp Courage asks the children to explore the nature of grief, how it is expressed, what it can physically feel like and its relationship with guilt, anger and regret. 'We recognize that we only get five days with them, and then they go home and continue their lives, and their grief never leaves,' Golden-Smith said. 'So, we focus on sustainability — giving them coping skills that are accessible and portable.' That can be by using pencil and paper to write or draw it, as well as healthy physical activity to pull attention away from intense emotions for a mental break. Remaining connected to that lost loved one is also emphasized. 'I do have some kids that come back year after year. As they develop and grow, sometimes that grief changes with them, and so they've got different things that they need to explore,' she said. 'Or, unfortunately, sometimes life keeps coming, and they've got additional losses that they are also needing to process.' The program is funded by the Children's Miracle Network, and aside from a $10 registration, is free of charge to attending children. 'And I will waive that in a heartbeat if it's a financial hardship,' she said. Golden-Smith, who is also the bereavement coordinator for Hendrick Hospice, said the organization also offers a morning adult caregiver support group that meets Monday through Thursday each week. 'We want to give our caregivers the opportunity to also learn about children's grief and have a space to connect with others who are grieving their own loss and trying to support their kiddos,' she said. Courage isn't limited to one week in the summer, however. 'We also have other programs throughout the year,' Golden-Smith said. 'We've got a six-week children's grief support group that meets in the spring and the fall called Club Courage, as well as a holiday grief workshop for families. And then lots of adult programs as well.' Visit the Hendrick Hospice Care website for more information. More: When is the southside Braum's opening in Abilene? More: What to know about the upcoming 2025 Children's Art and Literacy Festival This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: Water games help keep children afloat at Hendrick Hospice Camp Courage
