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With the rising cost of nursing supplies, and essentials including food, electricity and utilities, we need to raise $250,000 by December 31, 2023.
In 2020, 60-year-old Roxy was diagnosed with a glioblastoma — an aggressive brain cancer — and was declining rapidly. A combination of home care, caregiving from Roxy’s husband Mike, and help from family members allowed Roxy to stay at home for several months. When she began losing her balance and having trouble speaking, ‘Roxy’s Warriors’ — the name she gave her support network — began exploring other options.
“We were so blessed to have found Pilgrims,” says Patty Paul, a childhood friend. “They welcomed her with open arms.”
Roxy was an only child — but only on paper. When her mom became good friends with the mother of five across the street, she gained five siblings practically overnight.
“She became our sister,” says Patty, the middle child.
Patty and the youngest sibling, Barry Ursulak, can’t remember a time when Roxy wasn’t part of their family; they grew up together in the same Edmonton neighbourhood and remained close as adults. Roxy was at every family event and was their first phone call — whether the news was good or bad.
Seeing Roxy settle into the Hospice was deeply comforting to Patty and Barry. It was a relief to know Roxy was getting the care she needed for both her body and soul. Each night she’d end her day with a bubble bath — something she’d always loved — and then relax in bed with her favourite TV shows. “It was just so heart-warming that she could still enjoy the things she loved,” says Patty.
Patty fondly recalls the family’s Wednesday potluck lunches held at Pilgrims, Roxy and her aunts having high tea in the courtyard, and taking Roxy for wild rides down the hallway in her wheelchair. Toward the end of her life, Roxy had lost most of her speech but could still say, ‘Whee!’ as her chair picked up speed.
One of the most beautiful memories of all was courtesy of a staff member who contacted one of Roxy’s favourite musicians — a Belgian record producer and musician named Jef Martens — who offered to play for her over Zoom. “We gathered in Roxy’s room one night at 1:15am because he was in Belgium at the time,” says Patty.
This magical moment — like so many others — happened because staff members had the time to get to know Roxy as a person, says Patty: “This wouldn’t have happened without the generous donations to Pilgrims.”
Surrounded by loved ones, Roxy died on November 25, 2021. Afterward, a staff member asked the family to step out of Roxy’s room for a few minutes so they could dress her in a favourite purple outfit with her beloved dragonflies on it, and do her makeup. Patty was deeply touched by the gesture, which allowed the family’s last memory of Roxy to be a beautiful one: “Where else does that happen?”
Roxy’s story was possible because of donors like you. Another family needs your help. A family who is facing the unknown. Can you image the distress this family is feeling not knowing if their loved one was going to get the help they needed?
Making a donation by December 31, 2023 will ensure that a loved one gets the specialized care that they need.
Your donation can make a family feel confident that their loved one is receiving the care, respect, comfort and compassion they deserve, in a place that feels like home, surrounded by those they love. Your donation today will help immediately.
Thank you for reading Roxy’s story. On behalf of our Hospice Residents and their loved ones, staff and volunteers, we are so grateful for your generosity.
If you have already made a gift – THANK YOU – your gift is appreciated.