Who We Are

We support patients, families, friends and caregivers during and after the dying process within both Porter Medical Center and Helen Porter Rehabilitation and Nursing Center.

Building on the strong foundation and decades of personalized care provided by End of Life Services, a nonprofit in Addison County, Porter Medical Center plans to weave comprehensive end of life care services into all that we do. Our volunteers complement the clinical services provided by medical professionals by offering practical and emotional support to patients and families. These services include companionship, household help, respite for family caregivers, around-the-clock vigil sitting during the last 24-48 hours of life, and grief support during and after the dying process.

What We Offer

We recognize that dying is a part of life and our volunteers can support the dying and their loved ones through:

• Bereavement support to those in need
• Music and other therapeutic practices
• The creation of spaces where the dying and their family can be together when home is not an option
• Community education

Building On Tradition

In 1980, educational meetings began throughout Addison County to inform the public about the concept of hospice care, and to assess the interest in establishing home care whenever possible. Two years later, a group of individuals gathered in the basement of St. Mary’s Church in Middlebury to find a path forward. By 1983, Addison County Hospice, Inc. had become a reality.

Over the next 35 years, the name was changed to Hospice Volunteer Services and programming expanded to include bereavement support and numerous partnerships to provide community education needs around death and dying. Hospice Volunteer Services and ARCH joined to become what is today End of Life Services, Inc. whose combined mission strengthens end of life care services in Addison County.

End of Life Services was recently integrated into Porter Medical Center where we continue to carry on the tradition of serving end of life patients and their loved ones. We believe that End of Life Services is not just a specialty, but that it creates a philosophy and culture around every day well-being. This, in turn, translates into a transformative approach around how we care for both the living and the dying of our community members.

Volunteers

We have over 200 trained volunteers that provide practical and emotional support to hospice patients and their families facing the last year of life. Volunteers complete a 10-week, 30-hour training and become certified for hospice patient care. End of Life Services volunteers respond to a wide variety of requests for assistance and become an important part of the circle of care for patients and caregivers.

Contact

For more information please contact Louella Richer at lricher@portermedical.org or by calling (802) 388-4744.

Making a Donation

Your donation and support will allow us to respond to every request we receive for volunteers and bereavement support. Our services are provided without regard to the ability to pay and are offered in settings from homes and residential care centers to hospitals and nursing homes.