StarShine Hospice
Support in Life — And Death
Wearing T-shirts of remembrance, Viola and Taylor Washam and Charles Turner recall with pride the cookbook Donte illustrated. The cookbook was produced by StarShine Hospice and sold as a fundraiser. |
When parents and families must face the unthinkable — the terminal illness and death of their child — StarShine Hospice is there to provide care, comfort and support.
As this area's only hospice dedicated exclusively to the needs of children, StarShine at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center works with each family to embrace the beauty, comfort and dignity of every remaining day of the child's life. A diverse team meets the medical, spiritual and emotional needs of the child, parents, siblings, extended family and schoolmates, bringing services to the home so the child can remain in familiar surroundings.
Support for StarShine comes, in part, from the E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation, a leader in funding hospice services nationwide. At Cincinnati Children's, they provide the salary for a StarShine bereavement coordinator who assists families for two years after a child's death.
"The concept of dying in peace and with dignity is something the Carpenter Foundation board believes is important. The foundation challenges communities that have resources to use them to expand hospice care for children," says Joseph A. O'Connor Jr., executive director.
Today, Viola Washam is grateful for the bereavement coordinator who is accompanying her family through the grieving process after the death of her son, Donte, in March at age 18. Diagnosed at age 9 with a degenerative neuromuscular condition, he came to Cincinnati Children's a few years ago with an enlarged heart.
For nearly three years, StarShine staff supervised Donte's home care, trained Viola to change his IV bags every 72 hours and even coordinated a care plan so Donte could stay in school. Today, Viola cherishes a garden stone made by StarShine staff with the handprints of Donte and daughter Taylor, 10.
Viola says, "StarShine enhanced Donte's life so he could do the things he loved to do."
