Gilly's Story

"When I think of Willen Hospice I see it as a shining beacon of hope."

   
Willen Hospice was a place that said to me the very opposite of what I thought I was going there with Dad for.  It said to me:   let's embrace life, let's celebrate it, let's focus on the good we can do here and use it to help us through the difficult times.  Willen Hospice is not just a place where poorly people go to pass away, there is so much more to it than that.  
 
Willen Hospice gave my Dad his life back during his stay.  It gave us all an opportunity to spend precious time with my Dad, and in the 7 weeks he was there it was the most comfortable he had been in a long time.  
 
When I think of Willen Hospice now this is what I see:  I see myself and my family sitting drinking little glasses of wine with my Dad looking out across the lake, something we had not done in a long time.  I see my Dad sitting up in bed making my son a wooden aeroplane and showing him how he can fly it when he's a big boy.  I see the smiling Nurses and Doctors that took care of my Dad, and who became like a little family to us while we were there. 

I remember jokes, laughter, banter and Willen's energy.   I remember the privacy and dignity my Dad was given during his most vulnerable moments.   But most of all I remember the feeling of safety Willen Hospice gave us.  Of course I remember the tears as we came to terms as a family with why we were at Willen Hospice, but all the while you had a sense of this safety net underneath you, ready to catch you should you fall.  
 
Willen Hospice is a truly wonderful and inspiring place and I will never, ever forget its
support and kindness through the most difficult of times.  
 
Thank you Willen Hospice.  

Fred Mitchell, Gilly's father, was cared for at Willen Hospice in 2010