Please Read the News Stories and Events
at Eaton Community Hospice

The Grand Ledge Opera House was the setting for the Hospice Christmas Party and Concert. Underwritten by the Barry Chapter -­ Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, this party and fundraiser was attended by many.  The evening began with Chuck Archer from Charlotte entertaining us with his many renditions of Christmas music on his magnificent organ. I first met Chuck when his father was a Hospice patient. After we opened the Hospice House, his mother Katherine Archer started bringing homemade desserts. Three years ago, Chuck offered to add a special touch to our Christmas party by filling the air with those beautiful Christmas carols we all love to hear. This man is a self taught musician and may I say, a mighty fine one at that.  Following a delicious dinner catered by Saites Brothers Catering, we had the distinct pleasure of enjoying the delightful concert by The Barons of Brass. This annual event, organized by Todd Young with assistance from his wife Kathy and sons Kelvin and Kurtis, is in memory of Todd’s mother Norma Young, who was a former patient at the Hospice House. Todd with The Barons of Brass put many hours into making this an evening to remember. They do a fabulous job playing those Christmas Carols we all love and Master of Ceremony, Ken Beachler kept everyone on the edge of their seats with excitement. A very special thanks goes to Marilyn Smith, who really was the mover and shaker to get this event onto the calendar at the Grand Ledge Opera House and Ethelen Herbstreit who was very instrumental in acquiring funding from the Thrivent Financial for Lutherans. Other volunteers helping to organize and assisting with the evenings performance were John Herbstreit & Norm Smith. Topping the evening off was a $50,000.00 benevolent donation from the estate of Rosalee Soltow of Okemos.  A huge thank you goes to all who worked very hard on this event and to all those who attended and supported this memorable fundraiser/Hospice Christmas party.

 

2nd Annual 2008 Golf Outing

Sponsors Donators Volunteers Hale Electric Independent Bank Sparks Heating Bayly’s Bar & Grill Deb Merritt-Real Estate 1 Hope Landing Michigan Vetinary Supply Sally Wilson MD Fulton Lumber Sparks Ridge Companies Garn Restoration Baird & Associates Rollé Chiropractic Maxi Auto Center Advanced Weather Tech. Insty Prints-Downtown Deb Moore Pete and Ann Nicolaou The County Journal Deb Merritt The County Journal Tri-State Toy Supplier Insty Prints-Downtown Carl V. Reck Jewelers Broadway Acres Candy Ford-Mercury Beacon Sales Pizza Hut Antenna Men Tropical Tanning Center Christensen’s Furniture Richard’s Brand Source Great Wolf Lodge Flamingo Tanning & Nails The Gaval Restaurant Charlotte IGA Joe’s Gizzard City Warmel’s & Comstock Accounting Fulton Lumber Dan DeLeeuw Delsa Joppie Dottie Lobsiner Deb Moore Linnea Rochester Johnny Gaedert Dave Nickel Cindy Sparks Greg Sparks Pat Plunkett Pat Wing Cindy Gaedert-Wing John Gaedert John Dykstra Jr. Erron Sparks Ty Pion Amy Pacino Megan Clark Schad Sparks Mari Calton The Family of Eleni Nicolaou-Sparks ~Photo Courtesy of Cindy Gaedert-Wing, The County Journal~ Special Thanks to the Originator and Lifelong Sponsor, Carl V. Reck Jewelers

2007 Golf Outing Pictured are (l to r): sitting, Margaret Kyser, Mari Calton, Enola Nicolaou, Schad Sparks;  standing, Melissa Coy, Dan DeLeeuw, Moe Jackson, Cindy Sparks, Greg Sparks, and Cindy Gaedert-Wing ~Photo Courtesy of Travis Silvas, The County Journal~ Golfers showed up by the hundreds to support the first “E” Day Golf Scramble at Broadway Acres on Saturday, September 15, 2007. The outing, in memory of Eleni Nicolaou-Sparks, helped raise money for Eaton Community Hospice. The inaugural outing raised over $13,500.00, which was presented by the Nicolaou and Sparks families to Hospice Director, Margaret Kyser. Many of you remember Eleni from Carl Reck Jewelry Store. Besides her professional career, she was always involved helping others and was a tremendous asset within our community. Eleni was loved and deeply cared for by many and will always be missed. This special fundraiser for Eaton Community Hospice marked the 5th anniversary of her untimely death. A very special thanks to Mari Calton and Schad Sparks, Eleni’s children and all of their helpers, who organized this event and also to Greg and Cindy Sparks, owners of Broadway Acres for hosting the event. 11/07

Red Parkhouse In memory of Red Parkhouse, his wife, Jan and family members organized a “Street Rod” car show benefiting Eaton Community Hospice which was held on July 29, 2007. Dash plaques were given to the first 100 entrants and trophies were awarded to the top cars. Participants had a chance to win some cash in a 50/50 drawing, a door prize or any of the items offered in the silent auction. Margaret Kyser was given the distinguished honor of awarding the first ever “Hospice Favorite” trophy to one lucky winner. Supporters enjoyed lunch on the fair grounds and “jammed to the oldies” music while checking out the “Street Rods.” Our thanks to Jan Parkhouse and her family and friends for supporting Hospice while they honored Red’s memory with this fantastic show. Your participation and generosity raised $5,000.00! A very special thanks to the Eaton County Fair Board for donating the fair grounds and to Bryner Septic Service for donating the MUCH NEEDED porta-johns for this event. You folks are truly appreciated! 11/07

Article courtesy of  The County Journal Rotary President, Kathie Cook (left) presents  Margaret Kyser with the Community Service Award ~ Photo by Cindy Gaedert-Wing~ The Charlotte Rotary Club, at its March 27 meeting, presented Margaret Kyser, Executive Director of Eaton Community Hospice, with the Charlotte Rotary Community Service Award. Rotary president, Kathie Cook delivered the following comments at the weekly meeting: "The Rotary Community Pride Committee proudly recognizes Margaret Kyser for her vision and leadership in helping to create a very unique Hospice House for Eaton County.” “Margaret’s vision and heartfelt passion for providing for the needs of families coping with the final days of care for loved ones began as a caregiver for a terminally ill neighbor. She was destined to continue her volunteering for the Eaton Community Hospice for the next 22 years, and still continues.” “Margaret’s vision, passion and selfless energy paved the way for a unique kind of Hospice House. A house where no fees are charged, no federal or state funding is provided nor any insurance reimbursements are collected. Margaret’s vision for a Hospice House, which provides 24-hour patient care to anyone in need, regardless of their resources, is a testament to her ability to inspire a cadre of qualified volunteer caregivers, and at the same time create a community culture of financial giving that supports the day-to day operations as well as help pay off the mortgage on a beautiful five bed, one guest room, Hospice House.” “Margaret, you are recognized and greatly appreciated in the ‘Spirit of Rotary’ for your on-going commitment and dedication to Eaton Community Hospice.” 5/07

Eaton Community Hospice wins the Governor's Exemplary Community Service Program Award.  Margaret Kyser, Executive Director of Eaton Community Hospice along with other volunteers from Eaton Community Hospice accepted the award from Governor Granholm at the Hyatt Regency in Dearborn, Michigan on June 18, 2005 This award honors an organization that effectively uses volunteers to meet its mission. Eaton Community Hospice provides in home care and operates the Hospice House to ensure that the final stages of life for the terminally ill are peaceful. The Eaton Community Hospice has 147 round the clock volunteers who serve ten hours a day, one to three days a week. Margaret Kyser, Executive Director of Eaton Community Hospice accepts the  The 2005 Governor's Exemplary Community Service Program Award  from Michigan's Governor Jennifer Granholm and First Gentleman Dan Mulhern L to R, Michigan's First Gentleman Dan Mulhern,  Margaret Kyser, Executive Director of Eaton Community Hospice,  Michigan's Governor Jennifer Granholm,  Anne Cantine, Eaton Community Hospice Board President, and  State Rep.Rick Jones, R-Oneida Twp. 71st District  at the 2005 Governor's Service Awards at the the  Hyatt Regency in Dearborn, Michigan on June 18, 2005. L to R, Michigan's First Gentleman Dan Mulhern,  Margaret Kyser, Executive Director of Eaton Community Hospice,  Michigan's Governor Jennifer Granholm,  Anne Cantine, Eaton Community Hospice Board President,  and State Rep.Rick Jones, R-Oneida Twp. 71st District  at the 2005 Governor's Service Awards at the the Hyatt Regency in Dearborn, Michigan on June 18, 2005

New Parking Lot Lights at the Eaton Community Hospice House Night-time visitors will now have an easy time locating us from the road and a safer parking lot thanks to General Motors, UAW Local 602 and the family of Carl & Marya Barrett. General Motors donated $5,000.00 which allowed us to place 2 lights in our parking lot and a new lighted "Hospice" sign at the road. The growth of the Hospice House has been quite a surprise for us. "Who would have dreamed we would have so many visitors!" exclaimed Margaret Kyser, Executive Director. With the inclusion of a Thrift Store open to the public 3 days a week, extra parking spaces were added after the Hospice House was completed. The driveway was widened and parking spaces were made along the driveway which extends 450 feet from the road to the Hospice House - which made lighting a necessity. Thank you General Motors, our friends at UAW Local 602 and the Sederlund, Berry and Barrett families for supporting our organization! Update: November 11, 2007 Thanks to Mike Burley of Eaton Rapids, our Hospice sign is now complete. This lighted sign, donated by the Rev. Carl and Marya Barrett family, received the finishing touch when Mike volunteered to lay the brick around it. The concrete work was donated by Jim Rogers of Jet Concrete and Betty Briggs of Gale Briggs Concrete. Newly bricked sign at the Eaton Community Hospice House and Offices  11/07

by Carla Bumstead Lansing Community News Staff Writer Reprinted with permission from Charlotte Shopping Guide At first, the experience may seem contradictory. Upon entering the Eaton Community Hospice House in Charlotte most visitors agree that the entrance and view through the foyer and into the woods beyond give feelings of warmth, welcome and comfort. Yet, at almost any given time, five people are lying in the home’s bedrooms, dying. "There is definitely a special feeling here," said hospice social worker Sharon Harrington-Danos, who has had many patients spend their last days here. "There is just something about this place that is hard to put your finger on. It’s a home. It feels good in here. There is love. There is comfort." Margaret Kyser, executive director of Eaton Community Hospice, says the feeling comes from the staff. "Their love for everyone just bubbles over." Patient care worker Cherri Brester agrees. "Even the orneriest person that comes through this door is going to leave giving out hugs," Brester said. Brester has been with the Hospice House since it opened in 2003. Her husband died of cancer at the end of August 2003, just days before the home opened. Brester serves as the lead patient care worker at the home. "He tried so hard to make it until we opened, but he just missed it," Brester said. "We are a home, not a medical facility," stressed Kyser. "We get no funding at all from insurances or any governmental programs. Everything we do comes from the community’s support." Eaton Community Hospice House serves as support for various hospice medical care agencies in the area. Hospice House charges nothing to patients, families or agencies for its services. "The beauty of the way it works is that the patient’s nurse and social worker follow (the patient) here," Kyser said. "Nothing changes for the patient except the location." As far as requirements for accepting a hospice patient into the home, Kyser said it simply comes down to: "Do we have a bed available?" She said the Hospice House is filled to capacity about 95 percent of the time. Hospice patients typically come to the home as death becomes imminent, and the average length of stay is 11 days. Kyser said patients move from their own homes to the Hospice House for one of two main reasons — either the care required in the final days of life is too overwhelming for family caregivers to handle on their own or because the patient has no caregiver at home. Family members and friends of the patients are encouraged and welcomed to visit at any time, day or night. The home is staffed 24 hours a day, and family members often spend long periods of time with their loved ones. Both Brester and Kyser admit it is sometimes sad to say goodbye to those they have gotten to know during such an emotional time. "Because the average stay of a typical patient is relatively short, we often don’t get a chance to really get to know them," Kyser said. "It’s the family we often end up closer to." As is often the case when family and friends gather — particularly during emotional times — the kitchen is a focal point of the Hospice House. Steaming kettles of soup, potato salad, cookies and sandwiches are typical fare. Often to be found working in the kitchen is 81-year-old Dorothy Smith. She is one of the home’s volunteers who cooks and comes in several times a week. If a family member has a particular fondness for peanut butter pie, she’s got it covered. On Dec. 5, Eaton Rapids resident Tom Bolan wandered into the kitchen with several family friends in tow. His wife, Evelyn, had come to the home two days before and was staying in one of the north bedrooms. "Yes, I think I will have something," Bolan said, when asked about lunch. "This is a great place, and you can go ahead and write that down!" he said. His wife, Evelyn, died two days later. 12/05

by Carla Bumstead Lansing Community News Staff Writer Reprinted with permission from Charlotte Shopping Guide Twenty years of experience working with the dying and their families convinced Margaret Kyser there was an important, unmet need in the community for a hospice home. In 2003, that need was realized in the Eaton Community Hospice House, located on South Cochran in Charlotte. The home, which is 100 percent community supported, is free to patients. It is there for those who have a limited amount of time to live and are in need of extra support and comfort. Over the past 12 months, the hospice house has cared for about 150 patients. Kyser said she began working with hospice about 20 years ago — having gotten started by lending a hand to a neighbor who was dying. "(The neighbor) kept calling on me to help out. I was happy to, but it was not easy," Kyser said. "I said to my husband, if I live through this, I am going to get some training so I know how to cope with these kinds of situations if I am ever faced with them again." She did live through the experience and began taking hospice training through an Eaton Rapids Medical Center program for Eaton County volunteers. "At first, I was doing patient care, but then I was asked to join the Eaton Community Hospice board," Kyser said. "I ended up becoming president of the board but continued taking educational classes both at the state and national level." In 1993, she was offered the paid position of executive director. Eaton Community Hospice continued to offer support services to the medical hospice community. It did not charge for its services, billed no insurance companies and continued to be 100 percent community supported. As the years went by, Kyser said she began to see an increasing need for what was to become the Eaton Community Hospice House. "I noticed that, more and more, people didn’t have caregivers," Kyser said. "With caregivers having to go out and work, it was becoming more and more difficult to care for their loved ones at home … I really felt a place like (the Hospice House) would be able to solve an unmet need." As the idea for the Hospice House began taking shape, she learned of a nonprofit loan program through the USDA that offered 40-year, low-interest loans. So she got to work. However, efforts came to a virtual halt when her husband, Carl Kyser, became sick. Carl died of cancer in 2000. "After my husband died, I went back to the USDA and got to work trying to get the mortgage," Kyser said. "It took about two years to get all the paperwork and documentation in place, but in November 2002 we broke ground." The Eaton Community Hospice House opened in September of 2003. It is 8,000 square-feet and includes a great room, kitchen, quiet room, guest room, five patient rooms, a laundry, three garages and an administrative area. There is also a thrift shop in the basement. Kyser designed much of the home’s interior herself. She said she had envisioned it for so long she knew just what was needed and why. She is especially proud of the patient rooms, which are all uniquely decorated and have large windows overlooking an expansive backyard set against a line of trees and a small pond. The setting is natural and relaxing. "It is a home," Kyser said. "It is a haven for the terminally ill to come to at the end of life for comfort and care." Kyser emphasized the true "heart" of the home is its volunteers. She said at any given time there are around 150 such volunteers working in virtually infinite ways to contribute to the "haven." "We are all a part of a team," Kyser said. "And we all take such pride in how well we provide service to those who need us." The organization’s intimate connection to the community it serves was well illustrated when Eaton Community Hospice received the 2005 Governor’s Community Service Award. Kyser said the award was given in recognition of the group’s "utilization of volunteers to provide support within the community." Eaton Community Hospice’s annual budget is approximately $400,000, and Kyser said all of that comes from the community in a variety of forms. There are eight paid ECH employees — three full-time and five part-time. Everyone else is a volunteer. Many contributions — in terms of money, goods and manpower — come from the family and friends of those who have spent their last days at the home. "Many of our volunteers say it is a way of giving back," Kyser said. "They came here at one time to visit a loved one and just want to be able to give something back." 12/05

Photo at Top: Michigan's Governor Jennifer Granholm and Margaret Kyser, Hospice Executive Director