The garden at the Ellen Sinclair Kennett Lodge in White Rock, British Columbia, has a special feature that isn’t a plant or decorative touch. It’s there, but It’s also invisible, at least at first glance. That’s because this tranquil spot, found at a Long-Term Care facility near the city’s Peace Arch Hospital, is built around a philosophy – a belief that nature can provide peace and comfort for both hospice patients and their families. 

In this episode of Power to Heal, you’ll meet a former nurse turned professional gardener who has found new meaning in her work by becoming a therapeutic horticulturalist – a specialist in plants and nature, and their unique ability to bring comfort to those entering the final stage of their lives. 

With support from generous donors and the Peace Arch Hospital Foundation, her expertise has helped transform a basic courtyard garden into something very special: a therapeutic garden for hospice patients and their loved ones. The Vern and Helga Hoing Tranquility Garden, set in a quiet area behind the Lodge’s Melville Hospice Home, now provides a calming space for end-of-life patients – some wheeled out in their beds – to spend peaceful moments with their families. 

Learn how a carefully planned hospice garden can provide comfort to those with terminal and life-limiting conditions and for their loved ones too.

The Power to Heal is hosted by veteran broadcaster and long-time White Rock/South Surrey resident, Wayne Cox.

Presented by Peace Arch Hospital Foundation in White Rock, British Columbia, the Power to Heal podcast takes you behind the scenes of an innovative hospital Foundation and introduces you to the team who find new and sometimes surprising ways to engage with the local community and help fund the best healthcare possible in the region. 

Since 1988, the Foundation has raised over $210 million for capital projects, medical equipment, and community health programs. Their passionate and caring team’s number one priority is the prudent stewardship of your gifts and the resulting positive impact on patients and medical staff at Peace Arch Hospital and the entire White Rock-South Surrey community.

Download the Power to Heal wherever you get your favourite podcasts.

Links:

The Little Garden Company 

(News release) Funding is now complete for Ellen Sinclair Kennett Lodge

For more information about the Peace Arch Hospital Foundation, or to make a donation, visit pahfoundation.ca