Wednesday, Dec 5, 2018
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Hospice sitting service in demand BY SUSAN SANDYS
SUSAN.S@THEGUARDIAN.CO.NZ
Life is all about getting the most out of every day, says Hospice Mid Canterbury volunteer Jocelyn Thomson. The Ashburton grandmother is among men and women at the organisation who provide a sitting service for clients. In many respects the word sitting is a misnomer, as the task quite often involves getting out and about. It can be anything from walking a client’s dog and listening to music, or going on a trip to the shops or movies. “I have always had a passion for making people’s lives interesting,” Thomson said. “It’s all about getting the most out of the years you have got left.” The 67-year-old lives by the philosophy herself, somehow finding time for Hospice and other volunteer roles including at SEEDS and on Friends of Trott’s Gardens, while working fulltime. Being a service worker in a residential house at Idea Services, where she has worked for more than 18 years, helped free up her
daytimes for contributing to such organisations, she said. She was particularly inspired by a late dear friend of hers. The woman had her car packed and all ready to go on holiday when she became too ill to leave and then passed away. “I believe that’s the way people’s lives should be, they should be living to the fullest to the very last breath,” Thomson said. Hospice Mid Canterbury volunteer services manager Christine Wilson said just as important as outings and entertainment, was the companionship that sitters could bring to clients. “A volunteer can bring the outside world to a client no longer able to leave the house,” Wilson said. The organisation was always looking for more volunteers, and she wanted more men in particular as sitters, as male clients liked to share mutual interests. Anyone wanting to join, or anyone with a life-limiting illness seeking the support of such volunteers, can get in touch with Wilson on 307-8387, 027 227 8387 or manager@hospicemc.nz
Off to take another Hospice client out and about is volunteer Jocelyn Thomson. PHOTO SUSAN SANDYS 041218-SS-0012
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