Community generosity means improved end-of-life support for Oliver and Osoyoos residents.

Desert Valley Hospice Society (DVHS)’s biggest fundraiser of the year will go a long way towards enhancing the quality of life for people diagnosed with life limiting conditions in Oliver and Osoyoos, says society President, Janet Shaw.

“Once again, we were amazed and delighted by how generously our communities supported our Celebration of Caring Hands wine & cheese and silent auction on November 16th. We raised over $11,000 in a single evening, thanks to our incredible donors and enthusiastic event participants. Every dollar earned at the event will go towards our mission of supporting excellence in end-of-life care for residents of Oliver and Osoyoos.”

Contrary to popular belief, that doesn’t mean all funds will go towards building hospice beds for our communities.

“One of our key future goals is to facilitate the opening of a minimum of six designated hospice beds for the Oliver and Osoyoos area. In fact, in just a few years we’re going to need ten designated hospice beds for our population size,” says Shaw. “However, we believe that caring for and supporting individuals with life limiting illnesses now is just as important as saving for hospice beds for the future. That’s why we commit some of the funds we raise to further developing our volunteer programs.”

Currently, DVHS operates multiple volunteer based programs, all of which are available free of charge on a by-request basis. Trained volunteers are available to provide social, emotional and / or practical support to individuals nearing end of life at home, in the hospital or in a residential care facility, as well as to the families of those individuals. Volunteers are also available to provide respite support, end-of-life vigils, and bereavement support. DVHS’ newest program is called the Tuck-In program, whereby trained volunteers telephone clients or caregivers late in the week to ensure they have the necessary supplies and support for a coming weekend.

“We really want to encourage people not to wait until very near their end-of-life to access our support. Our volunteers are available to anyone diagnosed with a life-limiting condition. We can provide companionship for the journey, and make it a little easier to really live each day right until you die,” says Shaw.

Approximately 200 people attended the Celebration of Caring Hands event at Christ the King Catholic Church in Oliver.

“I want to send out a particularly special thank you to the members of Christ the King Catholic Church, who donated the space for our event free of charge, and to Desert Hills Estate Winery, which acted as our host winery for the evening,” says Shaw. “And, I can’t say enough about our incredible event planning volunteers, especially Juleen McElgunn, who put in an enormous number of hours to make this event such a wonderful success.”