In a short amount of time hospice staff and volunteers, family and friends, and our larger community have compassionately given from their hearts. We have 7 suitcases full of much needed medical supplies with many more supplies waiting to be sent during future trips.
We have shared how our sister hospice struggles financially to pay staff salaries and other needed expenses in order to provide the excellent care they do on a daily basis. I am so proud to share that that in the last few months all of you, staff, volunteers, family, friends, and our community have contributed over $9,500! Every day more money continues to come in via mail and our website.
The need is great. Please continue to share this website with your family and friends. Together, all of us, can truly make a difference.
Stacy
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Less Than A Week, And We're Packing...
With less than a week to go before the Team boards their plane from Florida to J0-burg, Steve Lasky is seen packing some of the thousands of dollars of donated medical supplies that will be carried by the team members as checked luggage.
In addition to these much needed supplies,the team will also be bringing a check representing the contributions of friends, family and co-workers. These funds will directly support the important work of the Soweto Hospice.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Try to imagine...
Dear Friends,
Imagine caring for an extremely ill patient who has full-blown AIDS and will die within the next few weeks. His wife, two of his children and other immediate family members already have died of AIDS. When he dies, his mother will be left to care for his remaining three children, two of whom are HIV positive. Countless other patients you’ve cared for also have died of this devastating disease within the month.
You live in Soweto, South Africa, where more than 1,300 people die each week, overwhelmingly from HIV/AIDS. The number is so staggering that I have to say it again – more than 1,300 people die each week in this poverty and HIV/AIDS-stricken region of the world.
You are a hospice nurse, or sister as called in South Africa, at The Hospice Association of the Witwatersrand. You rely on your hospice to provide a vehicle and gas so that you can drive to visit your patients. You’ve already been held up at gunpoint once and had a previous vehicle stolen. You are frequently threatened in some neighborhoods. You must be especially careful when transporting medications.
Or you could be a cook who serves warm meals daily to the adult day care patients. You know these patients, all of whom are HIV positive. You know they rely on the food you so lovingly prepare for them. It is often the only hot meal they get that day. It’s not unusual for you to slip a little extra food on the tray when a mother is in the unit visiting her child.
You also may be one of the other workers who keep the Soweto hospice running such as a community care worker (home health aide), social worker or administrator. Even through the dire economic times and violent unrest, somehow you get up, go to work and make sure the community is well taken care of.
Staffers from our hospice, The Hospice of the Florida Suncoast, have seen this mission in action during the exchange trips to our sister hospice. And they’ve seen the humanity of those who are overworked and underpaid, caring for a multitude of patients and families including the orphans left behind, because it is the right thing to do.
This year will be my second trip to our sister hospice as part of The Hospice African Exchange trip. I will lead six others on our 8,900-mile journey and two-week stay – an emotional and life-changing experience indeed. I’ve had the privilege of witnessing and learning from the workers, whose caseloads are many and hearts are ablaze. There are so many stories to tell of lessons learned, tears shed and laughter exchanged.
Sadly, our sister hospice is struggling to make ends meet and continue the care that the community so desperately needs. And, so, we are asking you – our fellow hospice communities – to reach out and support our sister hospice. Your dollars will go so far there, helping to pay for numerous medications, food and clothing for their patients and workers’ salaries.
Please consider making a donation on our blog site at www.Care4Soweto.org. On behalf of previous exchange groups, this year’s group and everyone who supports our partnership, we thank you greatly for your support in helping our sister hospice to continue its care mission.
Sincerely,
Stacy Orloff
Imagine caring for an extremely ill patient who has full-blown AIDS and will die within the next few weeks. His wife, two of his children and other immediate family members already have died of AIDS. When he dies, his mother will be left to care for his remaining three children, two of whom are HIV positive. Countless other patients you’ve cared for also have died of this devastating disease within the month.
You live in Soweto, South Africa, where more than 1,300 people die each week, overwhelmingly from HIV/AIDS. The number is so staggering that I have to say it again – more than 1,300 people die each week in this poverty and HIV/AIDS-stricken region of the world.
You are a hospice nurse, or sister as called in South Africa, at The Hospice Association of the Witwatersrand. You rely on your hospice to provide a vehicle and gas so that you can drive to visit your patients. You’ve already been held up at gunpoint once and had a previous vehicle stolen. You are frequently threatened in some neighborhoods. You must be especially careful when transporting medications.
Or you could be a cook who serves warm meals daily to the adult day care patients. You know these patients, all of whom are HIV positive. You know they rely on the food you so lovingly prepare for them. It is often the only hot meal they get that day. It’s not unusual for you to slip a little extra food on the tray when a mother is in the unit visiting her child.
You also may be one of the other workers who keep the Soweto hospice running such as a community care worker (home health aide), social worker or administrator. Even through the dire economic times and violent unrest, somehow you get up, go to work and make sure the community is well taken care of.
Staffers from our hospice, The Hospice of the Florida Suncoast, have seen this mission in action during the exchange trips to our sister hospice. And they’ve seen the humanity of those who are overworked and underpaid, caring for a multitude of patients and families including the orphans left behind, because it is the right thing to do.
This year will be my second trip to our sister hospice as part of The Hospice African Exchange trip. I will lead six others on our 8,900-mile journey and two-week stay – an emotional and life-changing experience indeed. I’ve had the privilege of witnessing and learning from the workers, whose caseloads are many and hearts are ablaze. There are so many stories to tell of lessons learned, tears shed and laughter exchanged.
Sadly, our sister hospice is struggling to make ends meet and continue the care that the community so desperately needs. And, so, we are asking you – our fellow hospice communities – to reach out and support our sister hospice. Your dollars will go so far there, helping to pay for numerous medications, food and clothing for their patients and workers’ salaries.
Please consider making a donation on our blog site at www.Care4Soweto.org. On behalf of previous exchange groups, this year’s group and everyone who supports our partnership, we thank you greatly for your support in helping our sister hospice to continue its care mission.
Sincerely,
Stacy Orloff
Monday, April 20, 2009
What a team!
We have such a great team of professionals making this trip. Each person comes with a specific expertise that will be shared with the Soweto Hospice staff. We, in turn, expect to learn many things from them. We're told by previous travellers that the Soweto clinical staff are exceptional in their ability to serve patients even though they lack the basic supplies that we take for granted. It makes me feel great to know that when we arrive we will be bringing suitcases full of basic medical supplies that will make their jobs easier and will bring comfort to their patients.
Today I went out and bought a 2lb. bag of Dumdums (remember those?) for the children. When I look at the faces of those children on the home page of this website, I know that I can do more.
Thank you so much, family and friends who contributed to this trip in dollars and hugs. Your love and support are deeply felt.
Roxie
Today I went out and bought a 2lb. bag of Dumdums (remember those?) for the children. When I look at the faces of those children on the home page of this website, I know that I can do more.
Thank you so much, family and friends who contributed to this trip in dollars and hugs. Your love and support are deeply felt.
Roxie
Sunday, April 19, 2009
13 days and counting...
The trip is getting closer and closer. All of our supply suitcases have been packed. We have seven suitcases filled to the brim (and weighing very close to the maximum weight allowed) with medical supplies, over the counter vitamins, blankets, and stuffed animals for the children. Our South African colleagues have put together an ambitious schedule for us. We'll be visiting with hospice patients and their families, conducting some trainings for the hospice staff, and visiting different cultural and historical sites to learn more about the South African culture.
Follow us on a daily basis by reading our blogs, watching our videos, and viewing our pictures. And, more importantly, if your heart so moves you (and how can it not) click on the link to donate now. Every US dollar makes a huge difference in Soweto.
Thank you!
Stacy
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