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Authors of A Healing Touch: True Stories about Life, Death and Hospice pictured with board member Leon Duff and executive director Dale Marie Clark. Front left to right: Leon Duff, Monica Wood, Richard Russo, Susan Sterling, Dale Marie Clark, Bill Roorbach Gerry Boyle and Wesley McNair. Nationally, A Healing Touch is consistently in the top 5-10 Best Selling Books regarding Hospice Care, in the top 50 for Physician and Patient and the top 75 for books on Healing.
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See our Press Releases for more information about this exciting project and read these book reviews:
"The stories here are varied, personal, and deeply human." - Port City Life
"The message is universal: hospice counseling is not, as many believe, limited to preparation for death but may help those who have already lost a loved one.... At once heartbreaking and hopeful, the stories become all the more poignant as each author personalizes them with references to his or her own experience of loss." - Booklist
"A small book with a big heart.... The stories are darkly personal yet uplifting, and well told. None of the writers lapse[s] into the moribund or sentimental. Each story realistically conveys the deep transcendence that can be born out of devastating loss.... A bonus of the book is seeing how the minds of six excellent writers craft a story." - Morning Sentinel, Waterville, Maine
"A description, often tender and always human, of the role that hospice plays in the lives of the dying and of those left behind. We could all stand to know more about this." - The Camden Herald, Camden, Maine
Hospice Volunteers of the Waterville Area
Mission Statement:
Hospice Volunteers of Waterville Area (HVWA) is a non-profit organization founded in 1980 that serves 27 communities in Central Maine. It exists to provide non-medical support to individuals and their families during the last phases of life, to loved ones throughout the grieving process, and to educate the community regarding issues related to death and grieving. Bereavement services are available to anyone who has sustained loss either through illness or unexpectedly. HVWA is volunteer based and community funded.
How Do People Receive Our Services?
People may refer themselves or be referred to Hospice Volunteers by their physician, family, clergy, hospital/homecare personnel or social service agencies.
Hospice Community Center
Waterville, Maine
Who Is Served By Hospice?
Individuals and family members who want to emphasize caring during the last stages of life and to loved ones throughout the grieving process.
Residents of Waterville and 27 communites within a 25 mile radius.
Our service area includes: Albion, Belgrade, Benton, Burnham, China, Clinton, Fairfield, Fairfield Center, Freedom, Hinckley, Mercer, Mount Vernon, Newport, Oakland, Palermo, Plymouth, Rome, Shawmut, Sidney, Smithfield, South China, Thorndike, Troy, Unity, Vassalboro, Vienna, Waterville, and Winslow.
Hospice Philosophy:
Hospice is a philosophy of care and support for terminally ill people and their loved ones that is dedicated to reaffirming that life in its final phase can be lived to its fullest. Hospice care sometimes takes place in special facilities, hospitals or nursing homes. In our area hospice care is primarily provided to people in their home.
For a comparison of Hospice vs. Traditional Care Click Here
"You matter because you are you. You matter to the very last moment of your life. And we will do all we can not only to help you die peacefully, but to live until you die."
-Dr. Cecily Saunders
St. Christophers's Hospital
