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.

Kathy Elwood is way too young to be a widow. Yet, other than the untimely death of her new husband, she claims she wouldn’t change a thing. “Dan and I were brought together in a powerful way that surprised both of us,” she explains. “But I know it was for a reason, and Dan felt that in his heart too.” Dan Elwood was just 44 when he died cruelly of stage four colon cancer. He lived only five months after his diagnosis. The couple met two years prior and planned to marry last summer, ironically, just about the time Dan died. Kathy says that Dan insisted that they move up their wedding date. He simply said, “baby, it’s the right thing to do.” So, with just a few loved ones by their side, they were pronounced husband and wife on St. Patrick’s Day 2007 by friend, and judge, Howard Sullivan.
As a long time nurse, Kathy has witnessed more than her share of heartbreaking family scenes. She struggles with the fact that she found herself in the midst of one of those scenes just when she and Dan thought they had “the world by the tail.” They envisioned an exciting life together with their blended family. Dan added a teenager suite onto his country house for Kathy’s kids; and they looked forward to trips to Telluride Colorado, and other exotic locales. You see, Dan was an experienced pilot. He flew private corporate jets around the world taking important people where they needed to go, for business or pleasure. Friends envied Dan’s weeklong jaunts to California or the Caribbean. But Kathy insists that the favorite leg of his trip was always landing at home; a home he’d designed, on land he loved, filled with people he cherished. Kathy recalls how she and Dan enjoyed riding their horses and snowmobiles into the surrounding countryside. These quiet moments are among her favorite memories.
Pilots have to be methodical to be good at their job. They can’t by nature be easily rattled or prone to panic. That’s the same way Dan took the bleak news of his condition after seeking treatment for what Kathy calls “a tummy ache.” Dan didn’t panic; he just wanted the truth from day one. And truth is what he got. Kathy says the doctor walked in the room and said “the news is bad, you have metastatic colon cancer and have six months to a year to live.” Dan tried a round of chemotherapy, but the abdominal tumors didn’t shrink, and the disease continued to spread throughout his young, strong body. “The one really good month between Dan’s chemo and his follow-up CAT scan lifted our spirits,” says Kathy. “We hoped the treatment bought us extra time, but that wasn’t the truth.” There’s that word again: truth. When Kathy was asked what she most appreciated about hospice, she responded without a moments hesitation, “you told us the truth and that’s what we needed.” Kathy is also grateful that it never took more than one phone call for hospice help to arrive. “To me, hospice is truth, diligence, and a staff that is never in a hurry to leave. You came, and stayed as long as we needed you.” Another truth is that Hospice will continue to be there for Kathy and the family as they make their journey from grief to recovery.