Volunteer With Summa Health Palliative and Summa Health Hospice

Summa Health Palliative and Summa Health Hospice offer numerous volunteer opportunities for compassionate people who want to share the privilege of being part of someone’s life at a precious time. As a volunteer, you can contribute to making another person’s life—and the lives of their family and loved ones—better.

Volunteer Opportunities

Summa Health Hospice is seeking caring and compassionate individuals to help others during the end of life’s journey. Won’t you consider joining our volunteer team? You may choose from a number of opportunities to help others directly by working in your community or indirectly from your home, including:

• Bereavement Callers—Place support calls to bereaved family members and provides a listening ear and words of encouragement.
• Bereavement Companions—Provide support to bereaved family members with regular visits to
  help make their transition into life without their lost loved ones a bit less overwhelming.
• Floral Delivery Volunteers—Brighten a patient’s day by delivering donated flowers on their birthday.
• Gifts of a Lifetime: Gift of My Treasured Memories—Record a written or electronic autobiographical journal of a patient’s life stories.
• Gifts of a Lifetime: Gift of My Story—Work together with the patient and family to create a poster collage of the patient’s photos and memories.
• Inpatient & Family Services Volunteers—Provide for the non-clinical compassionate needs of patients and their families on the Palliative Care Unit at Summa Health System – Akron Campus.
• Music Ministry Volunteers—Share your musical talents with patients in their home, ECF, or on the
  Palliative Care Unit.
• Patient Companion Volunteers—Visit with the patient in the patient’s residence (home or ECF) by sharing conversation, holding their hand, or simply being a caring presence.
• Pet Food Delivery, Dog Walking, & Pet Clean-up Volunteers—As part of the Summa Health Pet Peace of Mind Program, deliver pet food and kitty litter for a patient’s pet to their home, walk their dog, and remove waste from the yard or litter box.
• Respite Volunteers—Provide patients’ families with greatly needed breaks from caregiving.
• Spiritual Companion Volunteers—Provide spiritual support to hospice patients & family members under the direction of a Hospice of Summa Spiritual Care Coordinator (SCC).
• Veteran Pin Volunteers—Recognize and honor a veteran patient’s service to our country by presenting them with a pin and certificate.
• Vigil Volunteers—Provide patients with a quiet presence and families with peace of mind during the patient’s final hours of life by sitting with the patient so the patient does not die alone.

Volunteer in the Hospice Office or at Home

In addition, you can also volunteer in the hospice office at Summa Health System – St. Thomas Campus or from your home in any of the following capacities:

• Caring Cards Volunteers—Create cards to mail to our bereaved family members on the one-year
  anniversary of their loved one’s death.
• Caring Cuisine Volunteers—Prepare a treat to share with our families staying with loved ones on our Palliative Care Unit.
• KeepSake Pillow Volunteers—Create handmade pillows from the clothing of the hospice patient, giving the family and friends a memento to treasure.
• Sewing/Knitting Project Volunteers—Craft handmade items for patients such as walker bags, neck pillows, adult bibs, elbow comfort pillows, Cozy Kittys, Prayer shawls, or lap blankets.

To become a volunteer at Summa Health Hospice, please call 234.200.1210 or email hospicevolunteer@summahealth.org.