Welcome! This site is primarily a resource for two things: hospice and writing the stories of others.

Richard Haverlack, a volunteer for the Good Samaritan Hospice, created this site because he has been writing the stories of hospice patients for more than eight years, and he knows there simply is not enough awareness of either hospice or how to capture the stories of others.

In this site, you will be able find out more about hospice. If you came to this site through a search on that word, this is a good place for you to begin. Just go under that main menu item for Hospice and you will find description of hospice, a little history about it, what the different kind of hospices are, are and a list of links for further information such as  the location of hospices near you. We hope that you will find what you need. We know that since you are here, your need may be great indeed.

Also in this site, you will find information on writing the stories of others. We all know people, maybe older than us or maybe not, who have great stories that lots of people agree are worth saving. But nobody is saving them. Maybe you found this site because you are considering how you might be the one to preserve another’s story so it will not be lost when they are gone. If so, you will find resources here to get started you on your way to being the one who saves another’s stories. Just start under the Writing menu tab.

Another important resource is in the Writing menu and it is entitled Learning. Here you can find information about continuing your personal education – whatever the topics are that interest you.  There are links to university programs that offer both formal and inform course on all topics – including death and dying as well as writing. Hopefully, if you are interested in increasing your understanding, this resource may be useful.

Finally, Richard Haverlack has written a book about his experiences in writing the stories of hospice patients. Paths of Heart—Writing Stories Told at Life’s End , which is Richard’s memoir of writing the memoirs of some memorable hospice patients–and all those are a lot of memories. You can learn more about the book under the Book  menu tab with its title. And you can learn more about Richard Haverlack in the About menu entry with his name.

Thanks for visiting this site. Please leave your comments, questions or stories in one of the three blogs on this site: for Hospice, for Writing or for the Book. Richard reads these and will comment back as soon as he can. And the best of luck to to you, whatever brought you to this site.

Learn more about Richard Haverlack here.