[nagdu] . Couple face their own challenges by giving comfort tohospice patients.

Mon Jun 13 04:41:52 UTC 2011

Grate work.
Thank you for sharig this article.

Blessings!
Melissa Green
Giving up doesn't always mean you are weak; sometimes it means that you are 
strong enough to let go.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Arthur Nolden" <anolden at tampabay.rr.com>
To: "NAGDU" <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Saturday, June 11, 2011 10:04 PM
Subject: [nagdu] . Couple face their own challenges by giving comfort 
tohospice patients.

>
>
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> June 11, 2011 1:03 PM
> Subject:  Couple face their own challenges by giving comfort to hospice 
> patients.
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> The St. Petersburg Times, Florida -Sunday, June 12, 2011.
> ------------
> Couple face their own challenges by giving comfort to hospice patients.
>
> NEW PORT RICHEY, Florida:
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>
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> http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/couple-face-their-own-challenges-by-giving-comfort-to-hospice-patients/1174810
>
>
>
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>
> The St. Petersburg Times, Florida -Sunday, June 12, 2011.
>
>
>
> Couple face their own challenges by giving comfort to hospice patients.
>
>
>
> NEW PORT RICHEY, FLORDA:
>
>
>
> Their phone rang shortly before 9 pm Thursday.
>
>
> A patient was dying, and Art Nolden and Linda Knight didn't hesitate. They 
> had received special training for such moments.
>
>
> They called a taxi, loaded up their guide  dogs and headed to HPH 
> Hospice's Marliere Care Center.
>
> As "11th-hour volunteers,'' they sat through the night with the patient.
>
> "We talked about the sun, the rain, the dogs,'' Nolden offered the next 
> day, chipper despite the duty that kept them at the center until 4:15 am. 
> "Sometimes
>
> the silence was very important.''
>
> Giving comfort at life's end gives special meaning to this New Port Richey 
> couple who have ignored their own physical challenges to become beloved 
> volunteers
>
> at the hospice where everyone knows them by their first names.
>
> Linda is hearing impaired and blind and relies on Shirley, a 5-year-old 
> golden Labrador mix. Art is able to perceive light but objects once clear 
> are now
>
> only blurs. JJ, a 4-year-old golden retriever, is his working companion. 
> The four of them show up at the Marliere Care Center four hours every 
> Wednesday,
>
> rarely missing a day. Linda has racked up 218 volunteer hours, Art 227.
>
> "It astonishes me and touches my heart. They have so many of their own 
> challenges to contend with but they're as reliable as the sunshine," says 
> Sheena
>
> Thompson, HPH Hospice volunteer coordinator, who first met them while 
> making a presentation to the local Lion's Club. Art and Linda are members.
>
> Following the presentation, they approached Thompson and asked what they 
> could do as volunteers. Thompson appreciated their sincerity and during 
> two days
>
> of training witnessed their strengths. Linda is keenly aware of patient 
> needs. She knows when to listen and when to talk and she knows when to 
> stay with a patient and when to leave.
>
> Art's humor adds a light touch and he makes sure patients are aware of 
> Linda's disability, gently encouraging them to speak a bit louder and 
> slower. JJ and Shirley lead them through hallways and into patients' 
> rooms. There the golden canines with mellow eyes sprawl, still and silent.
>
> "Patients are interested in the dogs. They ask us about them, and talking 
> to patients about our situations takes them, for a time, out of their 
> situation.
>
> It's rewarding and I find the patients inspiring," Linda said.
>
> Their own challenges make them especially sensitive to the needs of 
> others. Linda was blind from birth, almost three months premature. She had 
> hearing aids before she was 5. Years later, in 2002, she received her 
> first cochlear  mplant, the second in 2004.
>
> "Being able to hear opens many doors,'' she said. "It's a never ending 
> journey. When you lose your hearing and your vision you become isolated to 
> yourself."
>
> Linda, 54, attended Alabama State School for the Blind. In 1967, her 
> parents realized Florida schools were including students with all 
> limitations in mainstream classes. The family moved to Pensacola and Linda 
> graduated from Escambia High school in 1976. She attended Florida State 
> University for one year, then transferred to Pensacola Junior College.
>
> She volunteered for a time as a telephone operator at the VA Outpatient 
> Clinic in Pensacola, compensating for her lost vision by memorizing phone 
> numbers.
>
> She married, raised a son and a daughter and has three grandchildren, a 
> fourth expected soon. She divorced and reclaimed her maiden name.
>
> Art, 67, lost vision from optic nerve atrophy, a condition that began when 
> he was a first-grader. Art married, had a son and daughter and served as 
> District Court Clerk on Long Island for many years, promotions coming 
> frequently. His vision worsened and forced him to retire.
>
> Divorced and tired of the New York cold, Art headed south in 1988, joining 
> his parents who lived in Port Richey. He learned about Lighthouse for the 
> Blind and Visually Impaired and served three years on its board of 
> directors from 1994-1996. His classification as "legally blind" qualified 
> him for a guide dog.
>
> In June 2000 he attended a guide dog class in Palmetto. He met Linda, who 
> was attending the class from Columbus, Ga.
>
> "With 16 people and 16 dogs, it was often hard for Linda to hear the 
> instructor," said Art, so he stepped to her side, repeating instructions.
>
> It was the start of a team effort that blossomed into a loving 
> relationship. They've been together for 11 years, sharing life, household 
> chores, and volunteering in the local community, particularly to HPH 
> Hospice and the Lion's Club. Art quickly gives Linda most of the credit.
>
> "She does all the cooking and she is great with intuition. She knows what 
> to say and when to say it," he said.
>
> Linda uses her Deaf/Blind Communicator, a small complex device with 
> Braille and standard keyboards. If a patient would like to hear a Bible 
> verse, for example, Linda can type the specifics on the Braille keyboard 
> and through oral communication she can hear the passage and say it aloud 
> to the patient.
>
> "We love listening to and talking with patients and I think we have 
> reached a milestone - to be in public, to give to the community and to 
> take part involunteer work here (HPH Hospice) or with the Lions," she 
> said.
>
> Art agreed and quickly added they are only two of scores who volunteer at 
> HPH Hospice in a variety of roles. Then they rose together, grasped 
> harnesses and headed down the hallway to visit patients.
>
> [Last modified: Jun 11, 2011 12:02 PM]
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