Hospice Tree Lighting honors loved ones

The glow of candlelight warmed the faces of the young and old alike Thursday on the front lawn of McLeod Health at the 23rd Annual Hospice Tree Lighting ceremony, “A Light for Someone You Love.”

Mark Fox, medical director for McLeod Hospice and Palliative Care, said the tree lighting is a special event not only for the families of hospice patients, but for the workers in the hospice and palliative care department.

“Each light symbolizes someone special in (the family members’) lives as they pay tribute and remember that special person they have lost,” he said.

Fox said the money donated to during the event each year goes to support hospice programs.

“Every dollar that is spent here goes into hospice to do more for future patients,” he said.

Each year, the tree lighting ceremony gives surviving family members a chance to express their grief in a healthy way, Fox said.

“Families have shared a special moment when they lose a loved one,” he said. “Having a community event like this brings awareness to what all our families go through and gives community awareness to what hospice does for each of our patients and their families. It’s a light for someone you love.”

John A. Salway, said his wife, Joan, went through the hospice program at the end of her fight with cancer a few years ago. He said he will never forget the kindness shown to her and their family by hospice.

“Hospice came to my home and they were the most wonderful people, giving and caring, that I have witnessed,” he said. “I was so appreciative of them. We come every year to celebrate Joan’s memory every year.”

Through volunteering with hospice, Salway said, he feels he now has the chance to give to others the comfort hospice gave to him and his family in their time of need.

“I have an opportunity to give back to hospice what I received,” he said.

For more details about hospice, contact the McLeod Hospice — Grief Recovery Center at (843) 777-2564.