Pine Tree Hospice welcomes new class of direct care volunteers
DOVER-FOXCROFT — Four enthusiastic direct care volunteers have completed the four-week training program and have entered the “ranks” of the Pine Tree Hospice corps of volunteer non-medical care providers. The training program conducted by Tracey Gray, PTH’s client & family services coordinator, is a combination of two-hour in-person sessions and online modules which learners take at their own pace. Development of the new format was supported by a generous grant from Bangor Savings Bank.
The new members of the PTH Direct Care Team who are now ready to be matched with compatible applicants are Marguerite Weymouth of Dover-Foxcroft, Lissa LeClerc of Greenville, Laurie Sheppard of Sebec and Heather Weymouth Pomerleau of Abbot. Direct care providers offer companionship, respite to caregivers, transportation and other non-medical services to clients.
HOSPICE VOLUNTEERS — Andrea Thurlow, left, a Pine Tree Hospice volunteer since 2012, served as host for the fourth and final in-person session of director care volunteer training. New volunteers are, back from left, Laurie Sheppard and Lissa LeClerc and Marguerite Weymouth, seated. Not pictured, Heather Wyemouth Pomerleau. Training was held at the Guilford Public Library.
Sheppard stated that she joined PTH because she was aware of the acute need for volunteers to work with the many lonely, isolated people in PTH’s service area. This area encompasses Piscataquis County and adjacent parts of Pennobscot and Somerset counties.
LeClerc is a professional social worker who has recently returned to her hometown of Greenville. She stresses that she joined because she is a big proponent of non-medical hospice services on account of her very positive experiences during her grandmother’s last illness.
Weymouth also volunteers for several other community service groups in Dover-Foxcroft, including Meals on Wheels. These experiences made her aware of the dire need for services in this area and motivated her to join PTH.
Each of the four in-person sessions was hosted by a veteran PTH volunteer who provided perspective on how to address typical, every day issues with clients. The weekly spring training sessions were held throughout June at the Guilford Public Library’s Community Room. The State of Maine mandates that PTH provide 20 hours of training to new volunteers before they begin working with clients.
The need for PTH services continues to grow at a rapid pace along with the area’s aging population. PTH is accepting applications from people in towns beyond Dover-Foxcroft. The next four-week training class begins in early September in Dover-Foxcroft for these volunteers. If anyone is interested in becoming a PTH volunteer, please call Gray at 207-802-8078 or email her at coordinator@pinetreehospice.org.
Since 1985, PTH volunteers have provided local non-medical support to people with life limiting conditions and their caregivers and to those enduring the grieving process. Pine Tree Hospice is located at 883 West Main St. in Dover-Foxcroft. Visit their website at www.pinetreehospice.org.