What My Hospice means is different to each individual and family we serve. For Carl, it meant sharing Christmas with his family and giving them gifts, and his hospice team at ViaQuest made that possible.

Carl Snowberger’s favorite thing to do every year at Christmas was to be Santa and give individualized gifts to his family. Our hospice team helped him fulfill his wish to continue this important family tradition one last time.

Carl was able to sign a card for each individual gift, and the hospice team laminated each card to create keepsakes for the family. He also received a photo frame that the family signed, which they will use for their Christmas family photo.

Family pictures were taken, followed by pizza from Arnis, his favorite restaurant. The day also included a reading of the Christmas story by ViaQuest’s Chaplain, gift opening, cookies and hot cocoa with Santa, Christmas music, laughter, and stories. Bereavement coordinator, Tammy, was able to meet and mingle with family to establish a trusting relationship for the future.

Rosewalk Village of Lafayette allowed ViaQuest to use their club room to host this event, working well with the hospice team to ensure that Carl received the best care possible.

“I want to thank each and every one of you who helped make this event possible, even those who participated behind the scenes,” said Ashley Garrett, Branch Director at ViaQuest Hospice. “We work for such a giving company who finds as much passion and significance in these moments. This was a beautiful experience and makes me proud to be ViaQuest strong!”

Written by: NHPCO, My Hospice campaign