Seniors Learn About Helios Care

Thirty-two Senior participants at the September 12th Sharon Silver & Gold Senior Club luncheon meeting learned a lot about hospice and palliative care resources available in Schoharie, Otsego and Delaware Counties. 

This monthly group at the “Spa Ritz” welcomed Tammy Christman, Director of Community Outreach and Volunteer Services at Helios Care, based in Oneonta, who presented valuable information about the expert and compassionate in-home palliative and hospice care the organization provides to support area patients with serious illnesses and their families. Tammy started her career with Helios Care (formerly called Catskill Area Hospice and Palliative Care) in 2005.

Helios Care’s services and support emphasize compassion, choices, and dignity. Sharon Silver & Gold Seniors were “pleasantly surprised” to learn about the wide variety of resources that Ms. Christman highlighted in her presentation including volunteer opportunities, adult grief support groups, bereavement counseling for individuals, and for families, a free “coping kit” for children and teens as well as Camp Forget-Me-Not with sessions in spring, summer and fall. 

Tammy also shared information about The Five Wishes document, a legal living will which helps individuals express their preferences for end-of-life care including medical, personal, emotional, and spiritual needs. 

This was another excellent opportunity for Seniors to learn more about the important resources available right in our own community. Everyone left knowing much more than they did before. To learn more about Helios Care, please call (607) 432-6773 or visit HeliosCare.org.

Area seniors interested in more information about the Sharon Silver & Gold Senior Club, located at the Office for the Aging’s Congregate Meal site at the Sharon Springs Firehouse, please contact President Anne Lennebacker, at (607) 547-9055.