Memphis, Tenn., Aug. 31, 2004 – Baptist Trinity Hospice, located at 1052 Oakhaven, will host a two-part training session on Saturday, Sept. 25 from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and on Monday, Sept. 27 from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. for those interested in volunteering.

The volunteer training will include discussions on understanding the hospice philosophy and hospice team concept; developing communication and listening skills; nutrition, pain control and body mechanics issues; and spirituality, family relations and grief.

Hospice volunteers can serve in many ways by offering companionship and providing support to family members. They work behind the scenes by answering phones, making comfort baskets, reading books to patients, running errands or just holding a hand.

Volunteers also can contribute to Baptist Trinity Hospice through the new memorial garden area at the Memphis Botanic Garden. The garden is supported by the Baptist Memorial Health Care Foundation and offers donors the opportunity to designate living memorials to their loved ones. Plants symbolize hope and the renewal of life, and volunteers find it therapeutic to remember patients this way. Hospice volunteers have a spring and fall planting and maintain the garden area throughout the year.

Baptist Trinity Hospice provides care and services to the terminally ill and their family members. Although cancer remains one of the primary diagnoses for hospice patients, others with terminal illnesses, such as AIDS and congestive heart failure, also receive care in the program.

For more information on being a hospice volunteer or to receive an application packet, please call Sandra Livesay, Baptist Trinity Hospice volunteer coordinator, at (901) 767-6767.

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