I want to first thank you all for your continued encouragement and support for the work that we do during this time. As you will see in this newsletter, we are developing helpful tools for the community to assist in coping with COVID-19 related challenges. Our Community Education team has worked to identify the most useful topics for our communities. This information will continue to go out through the next month or so and take the shape of insightful videos and articles as well as tips and suggestions.
Topics include compassion in time of loss, senior support, coping with panic and anxiety, grieving in the era of Coronavirus, and many more. Please take a moment to visit and share this important community resource at our website,
www.hospiceofsantabarbara.org
. You will find videos like the one featured below from our Spiritual Care Counselor, Rev. Kristen Rohm, on Grieving the Loss of Normalcy. I hope you are all taking good care of yourselves, your family and friends during this unusual time.
Be well,
David Selberg
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Grieving the Loss of Normalcy by Rev. Kristen Rohm
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Thank You to our Volunteers
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During National Volunteer Appreciation week (April 19 – 25
th
), we celebrated our HSB volunteers virtually and each volunteer was mailed a token of our appreciation for the time and compassionate care they share with HSB and the people we serve.
Thank you to our volunteers for your kindness, compassion, and presence that you provide!
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We've included a handful of photos from last year's celebration at Creekside Restaurant & Bar.
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Because of Our Donors, Staff Can Keep Helping
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"We recently were able to help the family of our 3-year-old patient with leukemia get financial assistance. Two weeks ago, the dad had lost his job due to COVID-19 and the family was starting to struggle emotionally and financially. Our team walked the family through the financial assistance application process with our partner Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation, which gave them a significant award. We also helped by making sure the parents knew when online school was starting and had all the information to help make that happen for their older children."
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"My clients have been able to apply for unemployment and other forms of financial support, but it is taking time for those funds to come through and there are immediate needs. Many of my clients still haven't gotten their first unemployment check or any other funding they applied for through programs like United Way. So, the gas, grocery, and other gift cards from HSB have helped them get through this initial period while waiting for other funding."
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"Clients, even new clients, respond extremely well to Zoom sessions. This is a very difficult time for everyone and being able to support and see a face and have eye contact and hear the supportive voice of someone with whom you have an already established relationship is beneficial. If you are a new client, forming a bond with a counselor online can also offer a greater sense of safety and often deepens the rapport more quickly than it might in a face to face session. It has surprised me."
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Learn @ Lunch
"Death and Dying from Different Religious Perspectives"
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Virtual Learn at Lunch:
Cantor Mark E. Childs
Congregation B'nai B'rith
Friday, May 15, 12:00 - 1:00 PM
Meeting ID: 812 215 810
Password: may15
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Virtual Learn at Lunch:
Rev. Elizabeth Molitors
Trinity Episcopal Church
Friday, June 19, 12:00 - 1:00 PM
Meeting ID:
982 2911 9459
Password: june19
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This year, Hospice of Santa Barbara is featuring a leader from a different religious tradition to address death and dying. Each will review common concerns, beliefs and rituals around end-of-life issues and practices within their tradition.
Get your lunch ready and join us virtually!
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We had over 45 participants join us for our first Virtual Learn @ Lunch on Friday, April 24th with
Pravrajika Vrajaprana
from the Santa Barbara Vedanta Temple!
Thank you for being able to join us. Did you miss our
Virtual Learn @ Lunch with
Pravrajika Vrajaprana
? You're now able to watch all Learn @ Lunch presentations on HSB's website. Click on the video below to watch.
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Hospice of Santa Barbara is closely monitoring the COVID-19 health crisis and created a list of resources to keep our community informed and connected. This list is being updated in real-time.
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COVID-19 Related Community Education Series
In response to the growing need to support the Greater Santa Barbara community, HSB now offers a comprehensive resource page called “Coping With COVID-19.” It includes videos and articles by our Community Education staff of dedicated experts, therapists and clergy. Topics include relevant issues we are all facing during the global pandemic. You can find information on grieving the loss of normalcy, managing panic and anxiety, cultivating resilience and compassion, ways for seniors to cope with isolation, help for teens navigating the loss of their school routine while maintaining social relationships, ideas for parents to allay their child’s worry or fear of death, ways to manage grief and memorialize a loved one at home, and more. There will be regular information updates; please check back with us to learn more. HSB is here to help!
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"What is Art Therapy?"
by Valerie Moore-Altavilla, LCSW, Art Therapist,
SoulCollage ®Facilitator
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The Healing Arts Workshops facilitated by
Valerie Moore-Altavilla, LCSW,
at Hospice of Santa Barbara provide a unique “unfolding” experience for those grieving the loss of loved ones. The workshop provides time for exploration and an opportunity to heal from within. Participants in The Art Therapy workshop explore their grief in a way different from talk therapy. The workshop offers time and space for participants to get “unstuck” and to get out of their head, get in touch with their body and release grief by responding through various art materials. Through the art process, those grieving often find new insights, new doors of healing open and keepsakes are created in memory of loved ones. Beautiful, healing creativity happens in a non judgmental, safe, comfortable and welcoming space with others who are also journeying through the many losses and transitions of life/death.
“What is Art Therapy?” Art Therapy is about getting in tune with the body; getting out of one’s head and spontaneously creating. Art therapy is fully about the process of creating; versus, that of a professional artist who is searching for a favorable end product. With art therapy there is not an expected outcome. There is not an agenda. Participants experiment with different materials and explore the art utilizing their five senses as a guide. It is about the journey. Images tap into memories, thus magazine collage is an option for creating during the workshop. These memories (images) are then transferred and become a part of a creative project. The process of choosing an image (memory) and creating with it utilizing your hands is part of the unique healing. This process utilizes the 5 senses (vision, hearing, touch, taste, smell). It’s about getting out of your chattering mind (left brain), and into your body (non verbal feelings). It’s about getting images out of your mind and onto the paper. Our mind can play tricks on us, but our body doesn’t lie, our body holds onto it all.
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During this uncertain time, you may feel pulled to get your financial affairs in order. HSB can help.
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Now might feel like a good time to sort out your will or estate plan. An estate plan is helpful for everyone, but it can be confusing to know how to begin. Hospice of Santa Barbara's own Judy Goodbody can help you get started.
Judy is a registered Tax Preparer who has been helping people with tax and estate planning for 25 years. This
free service
is available to all HSB volunteers, clients, donors, staff, or anyone in the community who needs help.
In observance of physical distancing practices, Judy will be available over the phone or through the secure video chat service Zoom. Contact Judy Goodbody for your free and confidential assistance at (805) 770-7119 or
jgoodbody@hospiceofsb.org
.
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Judy Goodbody, CFRE, CRTP
Planned Giving Officer
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Thank you for all that you do to support our work!
It is a remarkable privilege to witness the difference we make for those we serve on a daily basis. It is only through your generosity that we can accomplish all that we do and will in the future.
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Phone:
(805) 563-8820
Fax:
(805) 563-8821
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