|
|
|||
|
                 |
|
|
 |
Mal Schumann |
 |
Sister Cecile Forest |
Hospice of Northeastern Connecticut lost two eager volunteers and loyal supporters this past summer. Both of these individuals had great foresight regarding the crucial difference Hospice could make in the lives of patients and families and both worked hard to advance and advocate for that mission in our community. Earlier this year, both of these individuals were Hospice patients themselves.
Mal Schumann worked as CEO of Sanitary Dash for many years. During that time he was also a member of the Board of Directors of Day Kimball Hospital, and served as Chairman of the Board for a short time. After finishing his work on the DKH Board, Mal continued on to join the Day Kimball HomeMakers Board of Directors. In the fall of 2004, Mal became a member of the Friends of Hospice Committee. As his wife, Lesley, says, “Mal had lost several friends and in his mind it was time to give back.This was a way to do that because Hospice had touched our hearts.”
Mal served the Committee with great vigor and vision. He asked important and hard questions, he understood the competitive business climate Hospice was facing, and he celebrated the work and dedication of the staff and volunteers. He brought his organizational skills, his business acumen, his knowledge of the community, and his high level of commitment to this important work, and once again, Mal made a difference. He loved helping with Hospice fundraisers and being involved in advocating for the organization’s mission and purpose in our area. However, he didn’t ever imagine himself being a patient of theirs in the near future.
Mal’s family and friends and Hospice of Northeastern Connecticut have lost a true friend, a wise counselor, a reliable gentleman, a sturdy soul, a steady presence, a rare person of uncommon common sense, a courageous and humble man, a quiet, private, stalwart, and generous man.
Tearful goodbyes were said to another friend of Hospice this year. Sr. Cecile Forest served Day Kimball Hospital and Hospice and Palliative Care of Northeastern Connecticut for a dozen years as a Chaplain, first in a paid capacity, and then as a volunteer. She visited countless patients on the floors of the Hospital and also in their homes, and helped teach the Hospice Volunteer Class with a special class on the “Spirituality of Dying.” Many a patient asked for Sr. Cecile by name and looked forward to her pastoral and prayerful visits. Cecile was an exceptionally witty, wise, and warm woman, diminutive in stature, but mighty in spirit. Her dedication to the spiritual and religious well-being of patients and their families was unparalleled.
Sister’s faithfulness and devotion, her energy and efforts, her intuitiveness and insight, her encouragement and enthusiasm, her intelligence and vast learning, her character and courage, her commitment and compassion, her love and laughter are sorely missed in the Chaplaincy and Hospice Offices as well as at the Provincial House where she made her home. Sr. Cecile was a jewel whose life and faith had many facets, all of which shone brightly with the light of God’s love. She was glad to be able to use the services of Hospice, a program she had helped to support and grow in her younger years, when illness overtook her this past spring.
Even in the midst of deep loss, Mal and Sr. Cecile’s use of the very
services they helped to shepherd is a sign of the circle and gift of life.
They are deeply
missed, but certaily not forgotten, and their legacy
continues in the
everyday grace of
the work, skill, and care of the
Hospice Team.
|
Site Map | Notice of Privacy Policy Services | Physicians Directory | About Us | Careers@DKH | Development | Contact Us
Day Kimball Hospital 
|
