Stettler Community Visionaries: Felicity Bauman and Nancy Bauman
Hope for hospice
"We have to start somewhere, and we'll start with one room."
In an instant, a seemingly ordinary day can become extraordinary. January 9, 2018 became a life-altering date for Nancy and Felicity Bauman. Nancy came to Felicity’s workplace for a massage and they got to talking during the session, as good friends do. Although they’re related by marriage, they’re friends by choice. Felicity asked Nancy what she’d been up to and Nancy confessed that she had a crazy idea—to open a hospice in Stettler. It turns out, Felicity had been dreaming about the same thing for years. On that day, the Stettler Hospice Society went from a crazy idea, or a far-off dream, to a reality.
Where does the passion for hospice care begin? For both Nancy and Felicity, it comes from personal experiences. Nancy’s father passed away in-hospital from cancer in 2011. “I just thought there could’ve been a more peaceful, comfortable, private way of passing away with more compassion,” says Nancy, “I’m not taking anything away from the nursing staff at all…I know they want to spend more time with patients. But they can't with the pressures of everything they have to do.”
As a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN), Felicity understands those pressures. She started nursing in 2006 and quickly found her passion in end-of-life care. “I always seemed to be drawn to the people that were dying. And I did end up working at the Red Deer Hospice for a short time…It was so beautiful; so family and patient oriented.”
Felicity also lost a loved one in-hospital, her mother. Despite offering to take her to the Red Deer Hospice, Felicity’s mom didn’t want to leave her home. Nancy and Felicity hope that someday it won’t be a choice between home and hospice care for Stettler and area residents. “Having a local hospice here will help people not have to travel far to pass away…For us, it's going to be nice to be able to offer that home-like setting with medical attention in one place,” says Felicity.
And the Stettler community agrees. After their initial conversation, Nancy and Felicity organized a community meeting to present their idea. Over 75 people attended. Now, just over a year later, they’ve had their first Annual General Meeting and are over half way to their fundraising goal of $250,000. These funds will go towards opening their first room, a goal they’re hoping to achieve in 2019.
In the meantime, when they’re not organizing fundraising events, the Stettler Hospice Society is focused on community support, awareness, and education. Everyone’s lives are bookended by birth and death, one’s just more openly talked about than the other. “When you come into the world you're welcomed and praised…it’s a beautiful process,” says Felicity, “Sometimes dying isn’t spoken about. Our big goal is to help people be more comfortable talking about death. Not only amongst family, but within our community too. It's hard to accept death, but hopefully we can be more accepting together.”
Nancy and Felicity’s ultimate dream is to open a ten room hospice facility in Stettler. It’s a serious goal. Jumping through government hoops and crunching hefty numbers have been challenging realities. But if anyone’s capable of breaking through barriers, it’s the devoted army of volunteers behind the Stettler Hospice Society. They’re united by the same passion, belief, and drive that Nancy and Felicity sparked during that first conversation. They’ll achieve their wildest dream by taking it one step at a time says Nancy, “We have to start somewhere, and we'll start with one room.”
Stettler Hospice Society's 3rd Annual Hike for Hospice:
Date:
Sunday, May 7, 2023
Location:
West Stettler Park
Time:
10:00 am (Registration)
11:00 am (Hike starts)
Facebook event page:
