Hospice & Palliative Care would like to introduce you to a few of the special people we had the privilege to serve in the past year. Our compassionate end-of-life care was taken into their homes from Afton to Earlville and several towns in between. These patients are young and old; some are still with us, others have passed away; some have cancer, others do not. However, the one thing they have in common is that their lives, and the lives of those who love them, were made easier when they welcomed Hospice into their family.
Our Annual “Friends of Hospice” Campaign is the one time in the year that we ask for financial help from those of you who wish to support our mission, and want to help fill the gap between insurance reimbursement and the actual cost of patient care. Without these dollars, we would not be able to provide the wide variety of services that we do. If you would like to donate to this campaign you can call our office at 334-3556 and charge your gift or send a check to Friends of Hospice, 21 Hayes Street, Norwich 13815.
Each week we will share a short story of one of the five patients who wished to share their hospice journey with the public. While they took very different paths in life, their humanity and the right to die a comfortable and dignified death intertwines their biographies. We’re certain that your hearts will be softened by each of them, as were all of ours.

Chris Jantzen is the quintessential grandfather. You can tell by chatting with his two grand daughters for just a few minutes. “He was the best,” says 21 year old Andi, tears welling up in her big blue eyes. “Pop never once yelled or got mad at us. He took us to Craine Lake all the time where he liked to fish.” Chris also spent hours woodworking, building dollhouses and cradles for each of his six grand daughters; and for his one grandson – a treasured train set.
Hospice is not new to the Jantzen family; we took care of Chris’s wife Helen eight years ago. Chris met Helen when he worked for a milk plant in Calcoon, New York where they resided in the same boarding house. He called Helen a “pretty girl,” and their union is responsible for bringing three children, seven grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren into the world. When they settled down in Earlville Chris often worked two jobs, one as a milk inspector and forty years at Vernon Downs’s racetrack as a betting cashier.
Chris claims that he wasn’t upset when the Doctor suggested hospice care, because he knew just what to expect. Now as he prepares to leave this world, his family rallies round. His daughter Donna lives in the home with him, while grand daughters Andi, and sister Kara, camp out in the living room keeping a watchful eye on “Pop,” ready to offer a Kleenex or fluff a pillow. In many ways Chris is a lucky man because he inherited his Mother’s strong constitution. She lived to 104 but heartbreakingly, buried Chris’s four brothers, a husband, and a grandson before her own life ended. When asked how he would like to be remembered Chris says, “as an honest man.” His family is quick to add, hard working, loving, calm, and sweet to the list.