May Casey, Fundraising and Patient Care volunteer
The Bingo Group
The Secret Garden – Marymount Ward – Bernadette McKeon
Music and Song

‘What do you DO?’ is the most frequently asked question when it emerges in conversation that I am a volunteer at Our Lady’s Hospice. How to answer? I usually ask ‘How long have you got?’

Many volunteers have organised lives so they arrange a certain day and time which they give to the Hospice and can be relied on to be there and take care of the appointed task. These stalwart volunteers are an integral part of the organisation and contribute hugely to the life style and comfort of the patients.

I, on the other hand, do not have an organised life. Whether I am lucky or unlucky that nobody outside is making demands on my time, I am free to spend a lot of it in Harold’s Cross and as a result I have enjoyed many diverse tasks.

When I first joined in 1998 it was at the beginning of that year’s Light up a Life campaign. This has always been the biggest of the fundraisers and has now grown to become a really huge event. With others I open post, take phone calls, fill orders for Christmas cards, ornaments etc., enter data on the computer, meet the public in the run up to it and on the day – hectic and immensely satisfying! The annual Coffee Morning demands similar attention, taking and filling orders and even sometimes helping to deliver packs.

Other fundraising campaigns – Sunflower Day, Women’s’ Mini Marathon, Spring Raffle, Annual Trek (in some interesting foreign spot) the annual summer event Little Flower of Life (at Blackrock Hospice) and the many individual events the public are kind enough to run for the hospice – need organisation and support of one kind or another and volunteers can usually assist.

Away from the fundraising office I have entered information on computers, worked with reorganising files and made up information packs for new patients. I’ve also helped in the Library, the Coffee Shop, given hand care at the Day Hospice, distributed morning teas or coffee in the Palliative Care Unit, traced information in the archive, helped with weekly accounts and, more recently, helped a little in the Heritage Centre .

I love it all and consider myself so lucky to be a very small part of the organisation.

My time is spent in a great environment, I meet and have made friends with lovely people, I’m occupied and, hopefully, of some small use.

The Bingo Group

Adrian Beirne, John Breheny, Bernadette McKeon, Eileen Goodwin, Pauline Maguire and Marie Louise Bermingham

Volunteer Eithne Wynnes started the Bingo group 12 years ago and the group has continued ever since, every Thursday at Anna Gaynor House with our Extended Care Unit residents. A lovely connection has developed between volunteers and residents over time, singing, playing piano and playing Bingo together.

Pauline Maguire has been volunteering with the Hospice for 15 years and with the Bingo group since it began 12 years ago. Having lived in America and volunteered there, Pauline wanted to continue volunteering when she returned to Ireland and found a good fit with the Hospice – ‘I just love being with the people here; they’re so appreciative of anything we do and the staff are too. I think it’s important to feel you have a purpose in life and doing this, I do feel that.’

Eileen Goodwin, like many of the volunteers at Our Lady’s Hospice, had a family member who passed away here and wanted to give something back through volunteering her time; ‘I like how you get to know the people here and build up relationships with residents. I’ve also made friends with the other volunteers so it’s not a duty; it’s a pleasure to be here! I think there is a nice peaceful atmosphere, it’s good for the residents and it’s good for us too.’

John Breheny had a friend who was looked after by the Hospice 25 years ago and he was so impressed by the care his friend received he decided that when he retired he would give back by volunteering. That was 10 years ago and John has been here ever since helping in the wards and with the bingo group. ‘This is the residents’ last home in this world and it is important to make that the best home it can be for them. I think the volunteers get a lot of praise, but I feel great respect for the care work assistants who do the real work of caring day in day out, so I try to do as good a job as they do in caring about the residents. When I first arrived here, I thought I would be helping in palliative care but instead I was sent to the Extended Care Unit. I didn’t know how I would get on, but to my surprise discovered I had a natural bent for it. I didn’t know that about myself! I would say to anyone thinking of volunteering the only way to know if it is for you is to give it a try – everyone is different but you might find something you’d never considered before would suit you, like I did.’

The Secret Garden – Marymount Ward – Bernadette McKeon

When my family had grown up and moved out, I found there were only so many things I could do in the house, I was bored and wanted to get out and do something! I love helping people and decided to see if the Hospice needed volunteers – that was 8 years ago and from day one, it has been a great experience. Every Friday I visit the Hospice to help patients in Marymount Ward with volunteer John Breheny. After I’d been there a while and got to know the staff and residents better, Chris Gavin one of the care workers in the ward asked me to help with a garden she was creating on the patio for residents. We started working on it when it was just a bare patio. Since then, we’ve planted flowers and shrubs in pots, we’ve decorated it with lights and ornaments and we’ve had window boxes made so that residents in bed can see the flowers through their window, even if they can’t come outside. We also have a seating area with parasols where residents like to meet and talk – sometimes it’s hard to get them to come back inside as they prefer to sit there than in the Day Room! I enjoy gardening and it’s nice to just get stuck in and help where help is needed. I usually bring a little bag of my gardening tools with me and leave it over the wall into the patio when I’m on my way up the drive to the Hospice, then I pop in to do a bit of watering or weeding after I have finished on the ward with John. It’s great to see how it has come on over the years – it makes such a big difference to the residents’ quality of life and they also enjoy getting involved, helping to plant bulbs for spring etc.

Music and Song

Over the years we have been privileged to meet so many wonderful musicians and singers who have generously volunteered their time to entertain the patients and residents in Harold’s Cross and Blackrock. Whether it’s classical, modern, popular, ballads, sing-alongs, choirs, ukuleles or individual performers the enjoyment music brings is visible in the tapping of feet, clapping of hands and swaying to the rhythm of the melody. Music evokes memories, happiness, sadness but above all pleasure and we are indebted to those who bring their talent for the entertainment of others. To quote Shakespeare ‘if music be the food of love, play on’ – and what a joy it all is!

International and Summer Student Volunteers
An Experience That Opened Our Eyes

Over the last number of years, the Volunteer Office has taken a small number of international students during the summer months as part of the Volunteer Student Programme.

International students come from various colleges in North America for a period of 8 – 10 weeks as part of their internships or academic exchange programme. Linking with organisations such as EUSA and CAPA, students are vetted, sent all the necessary volunteer documentation and have a phone interview with one of the Volunteer Coordinators before they begin. Every student placement and reason for coming here is unique – particularly as they are so far from home – and we are delighted to welcome them into the programme each year. They learn about all aspects of volunteering, Irish culture and for them the unique experience of an overseas placement.

All students during the summer months receive the same mandatory and on-site training as every volunteer in OLH&CS. The summer and international students bring huge personalities, great enthusiasm and experience into the summer programme and are a valuable asset to our team.

All enquiries should be made through the Volunteer Office.

Volunteers pictured during their summer placements are Tia Goodwin (Dublin), Mackenzie Klaver (Kansas) and Mallorie Gagnon (New York)

An Experience That Opened Our Eyes

I first started coming to volunteer at Our Lady’s Hospice & Care Services in January 2015. I was participating in the Gaisce (Presidents Award) as part of transition year and I needed to do community work somewhere. My friend suggested that I should come to the hospice as she had been doing volunteering there since September the previous year. On my first day at the hospice I had no idea what to expect and was quite daunted at the prospect. Having Hannah come in with me really helped. When I came into the Volunteer Office, I was greeted by a lady called Niamh who was one of the volunteer coordinators. Niamh went over some of the rules and training and told me what I would be doing there. Seeing Niamh’s friendly face made me less nervous as I began to realise that the hospice was not a scary place, but a place filled with friendly staff and a welcoming atmosphere.

Once a week from then on, Hannah and I came down to the hospice for an hour to help with feeding at tea time. The more I went, the more comfortable I became with the work we did. Over time I got to know lots of the people’s name who stayed and worked there. Sometimes when I would be assisting a patient with their tea, they started to shout at me but I understood that it’s not their fault and they mightn’t realise what they are doing. I’ve learnt that you need to have thick skin! After I finished transition year, I kept volunteering at the hospice during the summer. I didn’t want to just have to stop going anymore so I continued on.

The hospice has opened my eyes to many things that I never even thought about before. It has taught me to have more respect and tolerance for our older generation. Every time I come home from the hospice I feel fulfilled and like I’ve spent my day doing something worthwhile and I haven’t sat around on my phone all day. There is never a dull moment being a volunteer at Our Lady’s Hospice whether I am helping with baking, skittles, assisting with feeding or sitting down in the restaurant enjoying a cup of free coffee – another perk of being a volunteer!

I am so glad I got to become a volunteer at the hospice and I would definitely recommend it to anyone else.

Eva Kirwan, age 16

The day finally came; the first day of my work experience in Our Lady’s Hospice & Care Services. For months people had told me that choosing this would be an experience and it would be an eye opener. I thought that it was a great chance to give back to the community and something that is out of my comfort zone.

As soon as we pulled up outside the beautifully built building, a wave of nervousness came over me. It was subtle but they say nerves are not such a bad thing. I made my way straight for the Volunteer Office and the minute I walked in the room, I was immediately greeted by the volunteer coordinator Niamh. Her warm welcome and calm vibe soon washed my nerves away. We started into an introduction on how to correctly wash your hands, manoeuvre a wheelchair safety and help feed a patient with ease. I was most sceptical about the wheelchair pushing as I am quite clumsy. As soon as the introduction lesson was over we headed over to the wards.

We soon discovered that there are four wards in the Extended Care Unit. From the very first day I was on St. Michael’s Ward which I couldn’t enjoy more. The day would start off by collecting patients and wheeling them to Mass at 10am. I enjoyed this part as you would get an opportunity to chat to the patients. After this we would go to have a quick coffee break and then collect the residents/patients from mass. When all the patients were back safety in their rooms, we would then get the tea, soup and biscuit trolley and go around each of the rooms giving out refreshments. This is a lovely activity as you get to chat with the residents and learn their personalities. After this task was completed we would collect the patients for baking. I absolutely loved this activity because as well as being fun, it helped the patients with their hand coordination and was something different for them to do. Each week it seemed like they were really enjoying it.

Soon after this activity it was time for lunches and we would go to our allocated ward. Feeding was always an aspect of this work experience that people don’t enjoy but I really didn’t mind it as I knew it was an important element. It was a relaxing time of the day and helped you to get to know the residents better. When finished, we would go for lunch and then set up the afternoon activity which was skittles, bingo or crossword. This was the most enjoyable part of the day as a good few patients would get together to play these games. I have so many fond memories of these afternoons like on our last day it was a big Christmas party and they had a singer in which all the residents loved.

I learnt so much in my 13 weeks in Our Lady’s Hospice that I will carry with me my whole life. When people said that it would be an eye opener, they couldn’t have been more correct. It opened my eyes in so many ways. It makes you see life differently and makes you want to live it to its fullest because life is short and everything goes by so quickly. During my time there I build up many bonds with the patients and will never forget them as they are what made it special for me. Just knowing I made at least one person smile during their last few days or even hours was the most rewarding thing of all.

Hannah Thomson, age 16

Eva and Hannah

Jim Hoare
Siobhan Semple

My name is Jim Hoare and I have been volunteering at Blackrock Hospice for the past six years. When I retired from a career in banking, I felt I had more to give and didn’t want to just play golf, travel and live a sedentary lifestyle. Blackrock Hospice was the first place I applied to as a volunteer. Initially I was informed that there were no vacancies available unless I was interested in a position as a receptionist at weekends. I jumped at the opportunity as I like meeting people.

The job is varied – sometimes I may have to locate the doctor on call and pass on information from a particular patient who may be at home at the time. Then there is the moment when the undertaker might ring to ask what time would it be convenient to collect the remains of the person who passed on during the previous night. I also receive donations from groups and individuals and issue a receipt for same. I take first time visitors to the wards personally, introduce them to the staff on duty and show them where the canteen is located.
The feeling I get when entering a place where people come to spend their last days is one of serenity and peace. There is a wonderful feeling of respect, dignity and divine love in the building and the energy I am sure is from the angels looking after everybody.

I am sometimes called upon to read a book or the paper for someone. This often spills over into a chat about anything under the sun.
I know the patients are grateful for the service the hospice provides and the staff of the hospice are grateful for those of us who give of our time to volunteer in whatever capacity.
I wish to continue my volunteering services by applying the skills I have developed over my working career.

Jim Hoare

I am married to Bob and am the mother of 3 grown up children. In 1996, 2 years after my mum died from cancer, I joined Our Lady’s Hospice & Care Services in Harold’s Cross as a volunteer and then in 2006 I moved to Blackrock Hospice as it was closer to home.

I am an evening volunteer, which means I arrive in after the kitchen staff have gone home at 6.00pm and stay for 2 hours. My main task is to be an extra pair of hands for the nursing and caring staff. I visit each patient (there are 12 rooms) and offer them and their visitors a cup of tea. I find it is often the visitor that appreciates the tea more than the patient, as they may be sitting with their loved one all day long. I will also do any general tidy up in the sitting rooms and the 2 bedrooms that are there especially for families. If a nurse or carer recognises that a patient would like to chat to someone or perhaps have a paper or book read to them, I am there to do so.

What I love most about volunteering in the Hospice is that I leave the busy world behind and enter a space of calm and peace. I love the way the staff – who must be run off their feet at times – know each patient individually and act with such care, compassion and love. People say to me the hospice must be a very sad place to volunteer in, but nothing could be further from the truth. If I were to advise any new volunteers I would say, be yourself. Life in the hospice is very normal for the patients, who are encouraged to live life to the full and our role as volunteers is to help them do so.

Siobhan Semple