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November 2016

Longmont United Hospital Volunteer Newsletter

Calendar of Events 2016-2017

Nov 1 ..... Lights of Love Sales begin Nov 1 ..... Memorial Service for Volunteers Nov 1-15 .. OUR Center Food Drive Dec 2 ..... LUHV Giant Bake Sale/Raffle Tickets Dec 6 ..... Tree Lighting Party Dec 8 ..... Raffle Drawing Dec 31 ..... Membership Dues for 2017 Jan 13 ..... Majestic Scrubs Sale Jan 25 ..... Annual Luncheon

Laura’s Note Laura F. Kinder, CVA Director, Volunteer and Spiritual Care Services

Laura

November is very special to me. One reason is that we celebrate the men and women who committed themselves to our country through their military service. Historically, Veterans’ Day dates back to the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918 when an armistice between Germany and the Allied nations came into effect bringing an end to World War I. Since 1954, we honor American veterans of all wars. My deepest gratitude goes to every veteran.

In November we have the opportunity to exercise one of our civic responsibilities. Unlike some of our mandatory responsibilities - obeying laws, serving on juries, paying taxes – we voluntarily act to vote for representatives as well as on potential new laws, at all levels of government. In our democracy, we voice our belief on how we want our country and communities to act and look like. The second voluntary responsibility we all have as citizens is to volunteer. I know that all of you reading this article embrace this concept. You shape our country and our communities every time you show up at the hospital and at the other places where you give your time and talent in service to others.

The third reason November is so special to me is that we celebrate Thanksgiving. In a variety of traditions, we gather within our families, friendships, places of worship and places of unity to mark our many blessings and celebrate the year’s harvest. We may also celebrate with parades, and watch football games high in our school’s bleachers or from a cozy armchair in our TV rooms. There is much to be thankful for. And I am thankful for you and your service to Longmont United Hospital.

Longmont Multicultural Action Committee Awards

Six of our volunteers were honored at the City of Longmont’s Multicultural Action Committee event on October 27th for their time and talents in making Longmont a caring and inclusive community. All received a certificate signed by the Mayor of Longmont. The six are:

Micaela Chacon Feliz Gutierrez Benito Chavez Anand Sharma Pradeep Das Irene Yap

Pictured: Anand Sharma, Pradeep Das, Sam

Seyfi Chair of Multicultural Action Committee,

Irene Yap, and Micaela Chacon

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November 2016

Fund Raising Pat Dudley, Chair Good news! We can restart our Vendor Sales. This includes all the fabulous vendors we've had come to our hospital over the years - even our Best Little Craft Show in Town! We have missed the vendors so it's going to be fun year reintroducing ourselves. The vendors are as excited as we are. We were always one of their favorite sites – mainly because our volunteers provide so much help during the sales. Most important, the LUH Volunteers will continue to provide financial contributions to the hospital as we have in the past! Future Sales

Lights of Love, November-December 6 November 1st you will be able to purchase your Lights of Love Christmas ornaments for your loved ones. We will have Ornaments for “In Honor” and “In Memory” of a loved one for $10.00 each. We are offering tree-topping stars for “In Memory” or “In Honor” of a loved one, which will sell for $100.00 each. There is a limited number stars available. Make your arrangements soon! This year we hope to have a separate tree in the Main Lobby for our ornaments. It will be moved to the Gallery for the Lights Of Love Tree Lighting Party, December 6th. Santa will be at the party to talk to all the little kids. The Longmont Chorale will be there to entertain us as the tree lights are lit. Refreshments will be served to everyone! Have you ever come to our party? It is very festive and a great start to the Season. Christmas Carols, Santa, revealing the tree – what else could you ask for? The Giant Bake Sale, Friday, December 2nd. We hope for great participation in the Giant Bake Sale this year. You will receive a post card asking for your home-made goodies. Those are our best sellers! We count on our volunteers helping us. We always have a great selection of home-made goodies. This sale gives us some of our largest profits of all sales, thanks to you. When doing your

Christmas baking, don’t forget LUH! Early shoppers get the best selection at this sale. We usually sell out by noon. We will need help at the Bake Sale, the day before to price the goodies and the day of the sale. If you are interested in helping please let me know. And - We will have a raffle at the Giant Bake Sale. One of our very own nurses made and donated an afghan to raffled at the Giant Bake Sale. The tickets will be $1.00 each. You must make a purchase at the Giant Bake Sale to be eligible to purchase a raffle ticket. The drawing will be at 1:00, December 8th in the Gallery. The afghan will be on display at the sale. You do not need to be present at the drawing to win!

Majestic Scrubs - Friday, January 13th Majestic Scrubs will have their usual great array of scrubs for our staff and volunteers. Don't forget the very comfortable, good looking and practical shoes that everyone loves.

The Best Little Craft Show in Town,

Monday, October 30, 2017

I will be contacting the crafters from past years and anyone else who has expressed an interest in being in our show.

If you are interested in joining our craft show, or know anyone who might be interested, please contact me at patdudley40@gmail.com or call me at 303-776-7198. Leave a message if I am not home, I will return your call or answer your email ASAP. Or you can call the Volunteer Office, 303-651-5205 and I will get the message. I am looking forward to a very exciting 2017 Volunteer year at LUH! Join us in these great activities!

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November 2016

Take a Walk Rev. Richard Bledsoe, per-diem Chaplain Very early in life, I developed the habit of walking, thinking and meditating. I came from a rather strict home, and the only way I could get out of the house

at night was to walk the dog. So, I did. I would walk the dog for miles and miles, and sometimes for several hours at a stretch. Nobody worried about me if they knew I was walking the dog. It is one of the happiest habits I have developed in my entire life. The

habit of walking, a lot, has stayed with me through the years. It has always been the primary way that I think, meditate, and pray. After I became a pastor, I hit upon a very happy discovery. When I began to have the normal responsibility of doing a considerable amount of counseling, especially with parishioners, I learned that if I took a walk with the person I was counseling, and we did our talking that way (these came to be known as 'a walkin' talk, with Rich'), that the fruitfulness of our talks was always multiplied. It is so much better than sitting in chairs, or at a table, and looking at each other. It creates a comfortable feeling of being with each other. It can be less threatening to the person being counseled. It is much better to walk and talk, going the same direction. It seemed to facilitate thinking together rather than one person being in the position of the helpless counselee. Then, over the years, when I would invite people I was meeting with, for many reasons, to take a walk, I found the same thing. It was a much more fruitful enterprise than sitting and watching each other. Much modern research suggests that walking and meditating may achieve many of the same results that EMDR Therapy (eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy) achieves with trauma and post-traumatic stress syndrome patients (PTSD). The point of those therapies is that the physiological movement of the eyes from left to right redistributes traumatic memories. Memories that are seemingly stuck in one place on one side of the brain spread over both sides of the brain. This makes them "digestible". The memories can pass from the short-term memories of the brain into the long-term memory system. Walking, talking, meditating, is similarly a process of left / right / left / right, and may well facilitate all of the same things. In my own

personal experience, and counseling experience, it would definitely seem so. The great Greek philosophers were called "The Peripatetics" (the walkers). In most of Plato's dialogues, Socrates is out walking and talking with his disciples. Maybe the traditional constant sitting, for hours and hours, in our schools, is retrograde. Jesus walked and taught constantly with his disciples all through the Gospels, as they wended their way

The Greatest Therapy: Wrapping Your Arms Around a Dog Brooke Terpening

Mango has been my therapy dog partner at Longmont United Hospital for the last three years. We usually visit the fourth floor on Saturday afternoons. Some visits are brief; others are filled with laughter; some are filled with tears as patients remember long-lost but still-loved pets.

Some patients are lonely; others get a brief respite from their pain. Some visits are especially moving. One such visit occurred during our annual TAILS team evaluation with Gail Elias. That day I knocked on a partially closed door and saw a young woman in bed eating a meal. A meal tray, dishes, coloring books, pencils, and notebooks lay scattered across her bed. A visitor sat quietly in a corner. I expected them to decline the visit, but to my surprise, the young woman dropped her fork and exclaimed that she needed to see a dog. We sanitized and entered the room. The young woman smiled and began to excitedly clear off her bed so she could reach over to pet Mango. She asked if he could get on the bed with her. I was fortunate to have Gail with me, who helped clear the bed while I got a sheet for Mango from the nurse’s station. I gently lifted Mango onto the bed, and the young woman wrapped her arms around him. Mango snuggled closer into her, laid down, and put his head

(See Mango / page 4)

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November 2016

Volunteer Voice Newsletter

EditorNN ... Ann Weber PublisherN..Gloria Armstrong To place an article in the Volunteer Voice, contact the Volunteer Office at 303-651-5205, or email to luhvolunteeroffice@centura.org or Ann Weber at annweber4@comcast.net

Special Thoughts ~

Trudy O’Cleary, Corresponding Secretary

Sympathy Cards sent to:

~ Elizabeth Laschinger, for the loss of her sister

~ Michael Guerra, for the loss of his nephew

~ Faith Stonebraker, for the loss of her daughter

1– Get Well Card sent

To have a Sympathy, Thinking of You, Get Well or 50th/60th Anniversary card sent from the Volunteers, please send requests to Trudy O’Cleary at tocleary@yahoo.com or call (303) 772-3615. Reminder: Due to HIPAA Privacy Rule we cannot

publish Get Well or Thinking of You card NAMES!

Deb Baumgartner 2 Michelle Tran 3 Mary Baisley 4 Marie Emmett 4 Nancy Lewis 4 Kathleen Dolan 5 Daryl Holle 5 Elaine Musselman 5 Beverly Boltz 6 Leonardo Diaz Aguilar 6 Mary Lennert 6 James Quadracci 6 Corin Bartusek 6 Jongwon Lee 6 Blanche Rankin 9 Judy McGuire 10 Evelyn Snell 10 Monica Swacha 10 Emily Myers 13

November Birthdays! November Birthdays! November Birthdays! November Birthdays!

Reminder !

New Centura Emails:

The hospital has updated and changed all emails addresses within Longmont United Hospital. Here are some important email changes for Volunteer Services:

Laura Kinder: laurakinder@centura.org

Stacey Jackson: staceyjackson@centura.org

Volunteer Office: luhvolunteeroffice@centura.org

Please make sure to update your emails so that we can continue to receive communications from everyone.

Dawn Ryan 18 Ron Alper 19 Teresa House 20 Ann Freeman 21 Jeanne Bohn 22 Daniel Nehls 23 Cara Martyr 23 Luther South 24 Maxine Mestas 25 Emma Goetz 25 Marybeth Flynn 27 Donna Parrish 27 Angel Steelman 27 Jacqueline Delier 28 Jaden Cho 28 Joy Grundy 29 Carol Messier 29 Gail Elias 30 Richard Macomber 30 across her lap. The young woman didn’t

speak for several minutes as she held Mango and stroked him. She then started softly speaking to him (and us as well, I suppose). She explained to him that she missed her dog, but she couldn’t have a dog in hospice care. She told him that she wished she could have a pet there because, unlike others in long-term hospice, she was still in a wheel chair and could take him out. She rocked Mango gently in the dimly lit room while her visitor looked on with a small smile on her face. The visitor, the young woman explained, was her roommate in hospice. The young woman’s eyes glistened (as did Gail’s and mine) when she repeatedly said that this visit was just what she needed. The young woman continued holding Mango while a nurse administered pain medication through the young woman’s port. She buried her face in Mango’s fur and hugged him hard. We promised to put her room in the book for more visits. As the medicine lulled her, I quietly moved Mango to the floor and out the door. I believe Mango would have stayed with her for the rest of the day if he could have. Yes, there are scientific studies showing that petting a dog or cat will increase endorphins, reduce stress, and lower blood pressure. But more than that, a therapy dog will look directly into your soul with loving eyes. Maybe, just maybe, the best medicine is medicine for the soul. And sometimes that medicine is nothing more than wrapping your arms around a dog.

(Mango / continued)

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November 2016

2016 LUHV Board of Directors

Jose Rodriguez Lopez .................... President David Keagle........................... President Elect Ethel Mitchiner ........................ Past President Linda Kunches ............................... Treasurer Jane Griffin-Dacey ........... Assistant Treasurer Jean Pazour ................... Recording Secretary Trudy O’Cleary ........ Corresponding Secretary

Leslie Boynton, Pat Dudley, Patti Evig, Janet Markey, Mary Macomber, Richard Macomber, Laurie Moy, and Sherri Stephens-Carter

Thank you!

Laura and Stacey want

to thank all the

volunteers that came in

to get their new

Centura volunteer

badge in October.

If you do not your new Centura badge, you

must call the Volunteer Office to make an

appointment to have your badge made.

You must also have the

orange sticker that verifies

you have had your flu shot

this year. If you have turned in your

paperwork for your flu shot and have not re-

ceived your sticker, please come by the

Volunteer Office. Everyone must have a

sticker on their badge in November to be

compliant.

SLEIGH BELLS RING

Once again we are partnering with Career Development Center to pre-order Holiday centerpieces. Orders are pre-paid and will be taken from November 14th to November 30th. Centerpieces will be available for pick-up at the Volunteer Office on Tuesday,

December 13th.

An order form will be appearing in your email soon.

LUH Celebrates Our Mission with a Community Food Drive

The Longmont United Hospital Community Health and Mission team is inviting you to help us celebrate our mission, by participating in a community food drive benefiting the OUR Center. Please join us as we reflect on and celebrate the LUH mission and our legacy.

The food drive will begin on November 1 and wrap up on November 22. There will be food collection bins placed conveniently throughout the hospital. You can find them in the physician lounge, main lobby, volunteer office and the med-ical office building lobby.

Questions or comments? Please contact Laura Kinder at laurakinder@centura.org.

Shopping list of most requested items:

• Canned fruit (all kinds) particular low-sugar • Cereal • Tuna and other pop-top cans of protein items • Soup, especially low-salt • Toiletries (toothpaste, toothbrush, soap,

shampoo, conditioner, deodorant, razor, brush/comb, wash cloth, toilet paper)

Other items that are always needed: • Pasta • Peanut butter • Low-sugar, low-salt snacks • Baby food, formula and wipes

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November 2016

Billy MitchellBilly MitchellBilly MitchellBilly Mitchell Beth HardyBeth HardyBeth HardyBeth Hardy

Frances YoungmanFrances YoungmanFrances YoungmanFrances Youngman

Jack ConnollyJack ConnollyJack ConnollyJack Connolly

Traci CrowleyTraci CrowleyTraci CrowleyTraci Crowley

Bob ConnorBob ConnorBob ConnorBob Connor

Susan BolwellSusan BolwellSusan BolwellSusan Bolwell

Thelma AbromskiThelma AbromskiThelma AbromskiThelma Abromski

Margo PeterMargo PeterMargo PeterMargo Peter

Timber ConnerTimber ConnerTimber ConnerTimber Conner

Bryce StrelowBryce StrelowBryce StrelowBryce Strelow

Brittany MaloneBrittany MaloneBrittany MaloneBrittany Malone

Cloe WeddelCloe WeddelCloe WeddelCloe Weddel Tank HollardTank HollardTank HollardTank Hollard

Virginia JonesVirginia JonesVirginia JonesVirginia Jones

Ann ThompsonAnn ThompsonAnn ThompsonAnn Thompson

Evelyn LongsethEvelyn LongsethEvelyn LongsethEvelyn Longseth

Wendy ShinazyWendy ShinazyWendy ShinazyWendy Shinazy