1. M I S S I O N S TAT E M E N T
CONNECTIONS / Spring 2004 Hospice of Michigan’s mission is to ensure quality of life and a comfortable, peaceful death
A newsletter for donors of for all patients receiving our care, and to provide support for their loved ones.
Hospice of Michigan We will serve everyone in our communities who needs and seeks our care
Phone: 313-578-5000 / 888-HOM-5656 and strive to improve the state of end-of-life care.
www.hom.org
To make a donation or volunteer for
Hospice of Michigan, please contact Corporate Office Non-Profit Org.
the regional office in your community. Hospice of Michigan U.S. Postage
All donations help patients and families
in the donor’s community unless otherwise 400 Mack Avenue PAID
Detroit, MI 48201 Lansing, MI
requested by the donor.
Permit No. 1096
Hospice of Michigan Locations:
• 112 West Chisholm Street
Alpena, MI 49707
989-354-5258
• 2090 South Main Street, Building 3
Ann Arbor, MI 48103
734-769-4212
• 400 Perry
Big Rapids, MI 49307
231-796-7371
• 932 North Mitchell
Cadillac, MI 49601
231-779-9570
• 400 Mack Avenue
Detroit, MI 48201
313-578-5000
• Hospice Home
25911 Middlebelt
Farmington Hills, MI 48336
248-426-4000
• 819 West Main Street
Fremont, MI 49412
231-924-6123
• 128 North Court
Gaylord, MI 49735
989-732-2151
• 1260 Ekhart, NE
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
616-454-1426 Thanks for Your Support
• Home of Hope
1175-D 68th Street, SE
On behalf of the patients and families we serve, we would like to extend a
Grand Rapids, MI 49508
616-281-9416 special thank you to all who supported our Annual Year-End Campaign in 2003!
Because of your generosity in sending a donation, Hospice of Michigan was able
• 10 Atkinson Drive, Suite 3 to raise more than $309,000 for those we serve. This will help us provide end-
Ludington, MI 49431 of-life care to more than 7,000 patients throughout the state of Michigan.
231-845-0321
Your support makes our mission a reality.
• 44720 Hayes Road, Suite 100
Clinton Township, MI 48038
586-226-2922
Hospice of Michigan board members
• 2525 Telegraph Road, Suite 100
Bloomfield Township, MI 48302
248-253-2580 Maggie Allesee Stephen Conway Robert Goudeseune Sanford Linden Charlotte Podowski, PhD
• 9333 Telegraph Road Peter Bakalis Linda Cummins June Hamersma Bradford Mathis Maurice Pogoda
Taylor, MI 48180 Mary Beth Bolton, MD James Czanko Lloyd Hansen John Maurer, MD G. Scott Romney
313-291-9700 Lawrence Bos, Sr. Dorothy Deremo David Hecht Philip McCorkle Mary Sanders
CONNECTIONS Hessel “Bud” Bouma, III James Fahner, MD Arthur Horwitz James McKay John R. Smith
Robert Brower (Chair) Dennis Gershenson (Chair) John Jackoboice Lee Miskowski Albert Taylor
Gregory T. Grabowski
Senior Vice President Robert Cahill Frederick Gillett, MD Thomas Kimble Allan Nachman Iris Taylor
Cary Gersh Beth Chappell Gregory Grabowski Denise Knobblock Timothy Nasso Janice Whitehouse
Creative Director
HOM Board of Trustees Hospice of Michigan Foundation Trustees
Donna Raphael
Editor
Tiffany Cusmano
Regional Development Director – East
Marcie Hillary
Regional Development Director – West
If you wish to remove your name from future fund-raising solicitations, please write to;
Corporate Clinical Quality Specialist, Hospice of Michigan, 400 Mack Avenue, Detroit, MI 48201.

2. News and events from
Connections
Hospice of Michigan
Spring 2004
Join the Volunteers put their hearts into hospice
June B.
Hamersma Louis Baker has known Willard Smith a long time, about the value of life, the worth of people’s ideas
Society as a neighbor and fellow farmer. “I remember when and the importance of feeling wanted and needed.
he would hunt fox. He was a hard-working out- Sandra Brooks, of Macomb Township, an HOM vol-
For more than 22 years doorsman,” Louis recalls. Now, as a volunteer for unteer for the past two years, enjoys spending time
June B. Hamersma has Hospice of Michigan, Louis drives 65 miles round- with Margaret Ewalt.
volunteered her time to trip each week to visit Willard at a care home out-
ensure that hospice side Alpena and talk about old times. “She is an avid dominoes player and taught me
patients and their families how to play,” Sandra says. “She is a wonderful lady,
receive compassionate “He is genuinely pleased when I visit him – you so positive, she makes me feel good. It’s nice to be
care and are treated can’t pay me enough for that feeling, because the there for someone,” Sandra adds.
with dignity at the end one absolute in life is the need to be needed,” says
Louis, who has been an HOM volunteer for 17 years. Sandra became a volunteer after a close friend died
of life. Because June has
from cancer several years ago. “I would sit with her
touched so many lives What motivates him? “I enjoy seeing the patients’ every day and I saw the good work that the hospice
within our communities, eyes light up –I don’t need anything more than workers did.”
we have formed the that,” he explains.
June B. Hamersma Hospice of Michigan volunteers receive 12 hours of
Volunteers add a unique touch to the care provided training for their roles in patient care, grief support,
Society in her honor.
by Hospice of Michigan’s professional team. In fact, community outreach or administrative support.
The June B. Hamersma hospice is the only area of healthcare that necessitates Support from donors helps sponsor volunteer training
Society recognizes volunteer participation. Medicare requires that 5% and volunteer outreach in the communities we serve.
individuals who have of hospice care be provided by volunteers.
In Grand Rapids, volunteer Bob Rasche has been
named Hospice of A special bond often develops between the patient visiting one particular patient every Monday since
Michigan as a beneficiary and the volunteer. Each learns valuable lessons – last June. He recently brought her a dozen roses
in their estate plans,
for no particular reason at all – these were the first
trusts or wills. Members
roses she had ever received.
will be recognized in the
Your support makes these connections possible.
Connections donor
newsletter.
We urge you to consider
joining the Society to
help us offer the HOM volunteer Louis Baker travels
compassionate spirit of 65 miles round-trip for his
weekly visits with Willard Smith.
Hospice of Michigan to
future generations. For
more information please
call Marcie Hillary
616-356-5256, or
Tiffany Cusmano,
313-578-5044.
To learn more about HOM volunteering, call the volunteer services manager in the HOM office
nearest you, listed on the back page of this newsletter or visit our website, www.hom.org.

3. Hospice of Michigan Connections I Spring 2004 2
Spring Appeal supports
our commitment
to Open Access
Hospice of Michigan is a nonprofit organization
with an Open Access Policy serving patients
and families regardless of their age, diagnosis
or ability to pay. We do this because we believe
it is the right thing to do.
Your support
enables our highly trained staff
to improve the end-of-life experience for
thousands of terminally ill patients each year Walk, Laugh and Help
throughout Michigan. To ensure this level of
care and compassion, we must continue our
It’s walk time again and we need YOU to put on those walking shoes
efforts to raise funds.
and join us for the 9th Annual Hospice of Michigan Walk & Remember.
Each spring around Memorial Day, Hospice
Walk & Remember is a 5-K pledge walk in the East Grand Rapids and
of Michigan invites you to remember your
loved one and hospice care by giving a serves as a time when friends, families and companies remember loved
memorial donation. This year’s Memorial ones who have been touched by hospice. Funds raised help Hospice of
Fundraising Campaign kicks off April 1. Michigan provide end-of-life care to the terminally ill regardless of their
Letters will be sent to current donors asking diagnosis, age or ability to pay.
for a donation. You may also make a gift
by visiting us online at www.hom.org, or This year, the walk is scheduled for Saturday, May 22 from 8 - 10 am
using the enclosed envelope. Your gift starting at East Grand Rapids Middle School. Come and enjoy free food,
can help provide: live entertainment and giveaways – raise $100 or more and receive a
$25 One dose of pain medication Walk T-Shirt. For more information, contact Kate Betts at 616-356-5231
for one patient or visit www.hom.org to register.
$50 Two home health aide visits
providing a soothing bath for
a patient
$100 A volunteer training session in
one community Walkers share hugs as they
$580 Complete hospice care for cross the finish line. Each
one patient for four days walker is handed a flower
Thank you in advance for your support and by volunteers to place in
for sharing in the compassionate spirit of the Memorial Garden.
Hospice of Michigan.
You are essential to our mission.

4. 3
Crystal Rose Ball takes
Monopoly theme
Tune In To the Big Picture
Have you always wanted to “Advance to Go and Collect For almost two decades, the Caldecott Award-winning
children’s book — The Polar Express — has delighted
$200?” At the 2004 Crystal Rose Ball, you can have some fun children and grown-ups with its beautiful illustrations and
and games and support Hospice of Michigan at the same time. inspirational story about a boy and his journey to the North
Pole. This Fall, Warner Brothers will bring this amazing
Presented by Dow Automotive, this year’s black-tie ball takes story to life for the whole world to see and believe.
place Saturday, May 15, at the new Compuware World
With the help of the book’s author, Grand Rapids native
Headquarters in Downtown Detroit. We will be Chris VanAllsburg and Warner Brothers, Hospice of
presenting our own version of “HOMopoly.” Michigan invites you to the big screen to see this movie at
its Midwest premiere at Celebration! Cinema in Grand
Crystal Rose Awardees will be honored in the following categories: Rapids on Thursday, November 18. After the premiere,
Outstanding Individual Lloyd Reuss join us for a Holiday Ball – an event filled with magic and
celebrity surprises! Proceeds will benefit Hospice of
Outstanding Corporate Partner Comerica, Inc. Michigan’s Pediatric Program.
Outstanding Community Partner Compuware In addition to the movie premiere, there will be an
extraordinary exhibit of photographs by national award
Outstanding Volunteers Joan Gehrke,
winning photographer, Jeff Dykehouse. These black and
PVS Chemicals white images of families living with hospice are full of
Max Chiddister, powerful emotion.
Bank One Winning entries from a statewide photography contest
Fred Marx, will also be on display – for information on how YOU can
Marx Layne enter the photo contest, visit The Big Picture Project
website at www.hom.org, or call 616-356-5231.
Karen Batchelor,
See the magic of life captured on the silver screen and
Detroit Regional Chamber through the eyes of a photographer with Hospice of
In the last five years, the Crystal Rose Ball has raised more than Michigan’s – The Big Picture Project. For sponsorship
opportunities or for more information on attending,
$1 million to benefit Hospice of Michigan’s patients and families. please call Marcie Hillary at (616) 356-5256.
For sponsorship or ticket information, contact Joyce Russell,
jrussell@hom.org, 313-578-6259 or go to www.hom.org.
Mask Project looks at Upcoming Events
the Faces of Hospice
Join Us in Your Area, visit www.hom.org
Ceramic masks, decorated and autographed by national and
May 15 Crystal Rose Ball
local celebrities will be auctioned in October to raise funds and Compuware Headquarters, Detroit.
awareness for Hospice of Michigan. The Faces of Hospice Mask Contact Joyce Russell, 313-578-6259.
Project will be on display at various sites throughout the state. May 15 HOM’s 14th Annual Golf Classic
The Mask Project takes place in the following Hospice of Ramshorn Country Club, Fremont.
Michigan communities: Ludington, Big Rapids, Fremont, Contact Theresa Anderson, 231-924-6123.
Alpena and Southeast Michigan. May 22 Hospice of Michigan Walk & Remember
5-K walk starting at East Grand Rapids Middle School,
The project’s grand finale will be a black tie dinner/auction on Contact Kate Betts, 616-356-5231.
Saturday, October 23, at the General Motors VEC Tower in June 18 Golf Outing
Warren. Nancy and John F. Smith will serve as honorary chairs Chase Hammond Golf Course, Muskegon.
and Carole Larson Wendzel is the benefit chair. Contact Theresa Anderson, 231-924-6123
The Faces of Hospice, Mask Project will benefit Hospice of August 20 The Mask Project
Michigan’s Maggie Allesee Center for Quality of Life, HOM’s Holiday Inn Ballroom, Big Rapids. Contact
Theresa Anderson, 231-924-6123
hub for research, education and community outreach.
October 23 The Faces of Hospice, Mask Project
For sponsorship or ticket information, GM Tech Center, Warren.
contact Joyce Russell, jrussell@hom.org, Contact Joyce Russell, 313-578-6259.
313-578-6259, or go to www.hom.org. November 18 The Big Picture Project
Premiere of “The Polar Express” and Holiday Ball,
Celebration Cinema, Grand Rapids.
Contact Marcie Hillary, 616-354-5256