By Greg Schmidt, Hospice chaplain I love the picture my oldest son sent me of his three kids grinning from ear to ear while gazing up into the sky during…
Help for Pets of Dying Owners Brings Peace of Mind
For many ailing people, their pet is their life, experts say By Kim Painter for Next Avenue Roland Carter, 78, of Stafford, Va., has advanced chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, suffers…
Here’s a tool to plan for late-life what-ifs
A website for older adults by older adults By Kevyn Burger for Next Avenue Jane Curry, of Chicago, settled into a retirement community a few years ago, where she found…
God is always waiting for us
Triple digit, oppressive heat! Very little in this life gets my attention more than when the heat index climbs past 100 degrees … with no wind! Other than, of course,…
The quiet blessing of grief that never ends
This writer finds beauty in the pain she feels over the loss of her sister By Jill Smolowe for Next Avenue In the almost seven years since I laid my…
How to prevent a real life nightmare at life’s end
A Next Avenue Influencer in Aging urges conversations around death By Barbara Coombs Lee for Next Avenue Editor’s note: This article is part of Next Avenue’s 2015 Influencers in Aging project honoring 50…
The importance of a plan
“LAND OF THE GIANTS” was a science-fiction series that aired on ABC in 1968. Taking place 15 years in the future – in 1983 — the series chronicled the adventures…
Don’t wait to talk about hospice
It’s an all too common situation. A family is at the bedside of a loved one who is seriously ill and nearing the end of life. Each member of the…
Heart & Soul Hospice makes patient’s One More Time wish come true
Heart & Soul Hospice in Farmington, in partnership with Meadowbrook Assisted Living in Pilot Knob, Mo., made a One More Time wish come true for community resident James Degonia. Degonia,…
Vulnerability comes with options
Some of the paintings I enjoy most are landscapes. Scenes like calm, peaceful, endless miles of ocean or turbulent, churning, white-capped waves amidst twenty foot swells. Or how about soft,…