Patient Stories
Hospice Supports Your Journey
Patient Looks Beyond the Process of Dying
Nothing can be more stressful than the stress of knowing that you or someone you love will soon die. Disbelief, shock, anger ... and feelings of sorrow and hopelessness are all common reactions.
Still, some people, like Barney Ross and his wife Bonnie, pictured to the right on this page, manage to journey through the process of dying in amazing ways. They find the courage to face the issue with grace, and they look forward to what lies ahead.
An Inspiration to Us All
If hospice could have a "poster child" it would be Barney Ross. His life was filled with love, hope, and joy, and he carried the same attitude with him as he journeyed through the process of dying. He actually engaged in the process, as if it were another opportunity to enjoy and learn from life.
Barney exemplifies the kind of person we would all hope to be as we journey through our own process of dying.
Many of us, of course, fall short of the remarkable example he has set. Most people struggle a little more with the process of dying, than did Barney.
That's where hospice comes in.
Hospice of The Gorge has helped thousands of patients and families along the path of their end-of-life journeys. We've been committed to bringing help and hope to patients and families through the dying process for almost 30 years.
We know that every situation is different and that there will be times when you may be fearful or anxious or sad. We also know you may feel joy or a sense of exhiliration, as Barney did, at the thought of what might lie ahead.
Denise Patton, director of the Meals on Wheels program in The Dalles, OR, is show second from right in the line-up of Meals on Wheels cooks and other helpers.
The Meals on Wheels program hosted the going away celebration for Barney, and Denise Patton shared with Hospice of The Gorge, her views on Barney's amazing attitude about the process of dying and what he felt came next.
