After watching her friend pass away from a long illness, Janice Hayes decided she wanted to get involved with hospice care. She has now been volunteering with Applegate HomeCare and Hospice for a year and a half.

“I was trained by a social worker at Applegate,” Hayes said. “I learned the meaning of palliative care and hospice care, ways to approach people from an emotional standpoint and how to support families and caregivers.”

According to Hayes, her volunteer time is spent mostly visiting and listening, running errands for the patient she is visiting or just being there.

“They mainly just need you to sit there and talk to them,” she said. “They can get lonely. Even when they have someone to care for them, it’s nice for them to see another face. And the caregivers can always use a break.”

With the women she has visited, Hayes said she feels the common bond of being a mother and feels that the visits are good for her as well as for those she visits. During her time of service she has visited with a few different patients, but she has been visiting the same woman now for eight months.

“I mostly sit with her and go through photos and put them into photo albums,” she said. “It helps her remember things, and we’re organizing at the same time. She enjoys telling me the stories that go along with the photos.”

Hayes said the best reward for her volunteer efforts is making some great friends.

“They have so much to share and are so wise,” she said. “And there is so much common sense in their wisdom. I love to go and enjoy visiting them. They are good people and I am so glad to be around them. When you do something like this, it helps you feel like life has some sort of a purpose and you’re not just living for yourself.”

Applegate appreciates the service of volunteers like Hayes.

“She is a fantastic volunteer,” said Jason Dinger, volunteer coordinator at Applegate. “She does a great job and contributes so much, not only through the time that she spends with our clients, but through her warm heart and wonderful personality. We are so grateful to have her as a part of our team.”

Hayes said no matter what stage you are at in life, you can benefit from volunteering.

“Volunteering takes you outside your normal routine,” she said. “It lets you look at the world with a different perspective. Your troubles are a little bit smaller when you see others’ struggles and help each other. And when your family sees you volunteering, they understand that service is important.”