Hospice Volunteer Awards Presented at National Conference in Atlanta

Awards Sponsored by National Hospice Foundation and the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization

ALEXANDRIA, Va., Sept. 14 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- There are more than 550,000 trained, hospice volunteers contributing more than 25 million hours annually to hospice organizations across the country. Three of those volunteers were honored by the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization and the National Hospice Foundation for their extraordinary efforts to serve.

The Volunteers are the Foundation of Hospice Awards were presented today at NHPCO's 11th Clinical Team Conference at the Sidney Marcus Auditorium at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta.

"One of the highlights of my job is meeting the staff and volunteers working in hospices across the country. Each and every hospice volunteer deserves recognition and the highest of accolades but the volunteers we are recognizing today truly demonstrate an outstanding level of commitment and passion," said Donald Schumacher, president and CEO of NHPCO and the National Hospice Foundation.

The Volunteers are the Foundation of Hospice Awards, created and administered by NHPCOs NATIONAL COUNCIL OF HOSPICE AND PALLIATIVE PROFESSIONALS, recognize hospice volunteers who best reflect the universal concept of volunteerism in its truest sense—serving as an inspiration to others. The 2010 awards were presented to volunteers whose work has focused on specific areas.

• Patient/Family Support: Margaret Williams-DeCelles, a volunteer with Partners Hospice in Waltham, Massachusetts.
• Organizational Support:  Charlotte "Jeff" Liddell, a volunteer with Hospice of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
• Teen Service:  Juno Lee, a volunteer with Suncoast Hospice in Clearwater, Florida.

Schumacher added, "The service of volunteers -- in every aspect of hospice and palliative care -- is truly a gift of caring that makes a world of difference to patients, families and the organization's they serve."

Learn more about these distinguished award recipients in the awards section of NHPCO's website at www.nhpco.org/awards.

NHPCO is the oldest and largest nonprofit membership organization representing hospice and palliative care programs and professionals in the United States. NHPCO's mission is to lead and mobilize social change for improved care at the end of life.

SOURCE National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization