A Place to Say Our Last Goodbyes With Love

It’s hard to believe that Chatham-Kent Hospice is celebrating its ten-year anniversary! So many lives have been changed by this wonderful place, including mine.

In 2014 I was working as a nurse at Chatham-Kent Health Alliance and was honoured to be hired as the Director of Hospice Services to help design, build, and open the hospice. This role was such a gift to me, and I met so many wonderful people who were as committed as I was to bringing hospice care to Chatham-Kent. Everyone wanted to make this a place like no other – bringing comfort and excellent end of life care to those who would live there and to their loved ones.

My parents Helen and George Zimmer (aka ‘Geo’) listened to me talk about hospice for the next two years and were as excited as I was for it to open. I remember taking them on a tour and they were so proud of the work everyone had done. My dad had many machinist skills and the mind of an inventor. I explained to him how we had designed a beautiful reflecting pool where we hoped to float candles in honour of those who lived and died at hospice. He was able to design a tool on his lathe that we could use to lower the candles into the pool. It still sits in the reflection room and is known at the ‘Geo stick’! A special legacy.

Hospice opened in April of 2016, and shortly after that, my father’s health declined after living with cancer for many years. He suffered a stroke which left him unable to use his legs. When it was determined that he would not recover, we considered a move to hospice where the overhead lifts would support his care and mobility.

On Father’s Day morning, dad called me from his hospital bed after a tough night and said, “I think I am ready to go to hospice now – the launchpad to heaven”. We were able to move him that day, and it was the last Father’s Day gift I would give to him. We shared lots of memories and had many parties over the next two weeks while he lived a full life in Room 1. I was on the other side of the bed now, and our family were the recipients of the wonderful care from the staff and volunteers.

My father loved his time at hospice, and we have so many wonderful stories and pictures. My mom was a retired nurse who had been caring for him for a long time, and you could see the relief in her face when she could be there as his wife and not his caregiver. We made good use of the ‘Geo stick’ during our farewell celebration as he left the hospice, sharing songs and prayers, laughter and tears. We filled the pool with candles, and it was a time we will all remember.

Four years later, during covid, my brother Joe died suddenly after suffering a heart attack. He owned Zimmer Signworks and had installed the signage on the hospice. We think of him when we drive by and see the beautiful silver logo shining in the sunlight. We feel like his spirit is there too, even though he never lived at hospice.

Fast forward another four years to April 2024 when my mom began suffering with heart failure. She was able to go home from hospital for a number of weeks but eventually needed the benefit of the palliative medications and the expertise of the hospice staff. Almost eight years to the day after my father was admitted, she was admitted to the same hospice room that dad lived in. We all felt relief that she was there, as did she. It was like going home – home to the ‘launchpad to heaven’. Before she died mom told us, “I know you will be sad when I am not here, and you will miss me, but I want you to be happy – because I am happy! I am ready to go to see Geo, Joe, and Jesus. Please be happy for me.” They both taught us many lessons through the years, but most of all they showed us how to live fully and die well.

We will be forever grateful to Chatham-Kent Hospice for all they have done not only for our family but for the thousands of people who have benefited from their care. Happy anniversary!

-Shared by Michelle O’Rourke in loving memory of her parents, Helen & George