Loving Our Community Well

Frederick County Chamber of Commerce President & CEO Rick Weldon recently visited Hospice’s all-staff meeting and delivered a message on how deeply meaningful hospice care has been to him – and Frederick Health Hospice’s powerful impact in our community. A selection of what he shared, below:

“I’ve come to know through personal experience that hospice and palliative care are more than services. They’re a community mission. You are the ones families trust when they need hope, clarity, and comfort. And that trust is not given lightly—it is earned through your compassion,
your skill, and your presence.

Less than a year ago, my three siblings and I learned the lesson you teach every day. My mother’s health declined rapidly, and as she was a resident of New Castle, DE, we connected with Delaware Hospice. Our first meeting with their team was nothing like what I anticipated.

I expected a medical dialogue, but what we had was a deep, emotionally significant family conversation.

Toward the end of her life, as we gathered at my sister’s house, a Delaware Hospice caregiver came out of Mom’s room to where I was sitting, and said “Rick, I think you need to go and sit with her.” With tear-filled eyes, I took the hand she offered and told her I wasn’t sure what to say – though my mother and I often spoke on the phone, our relationship was more distant than I would have liked. She said, “Just have a conversation with her, like you’ve always had. Talk about anything, your
job, your kids, your grandkids. Then tell her you’re there, that you love her, and that whenever she’s ready, you’re ready, too.” So I did.

Twenty minutes after that bedside chat, Mom took her last breath, and her hands, which my brother and I were holding, went limp. It was
sad, it felt too soon, but it was one of the most beautiful experiences of my life. And a stranger, an angel from Delaware Hospice, made that possible.

I say all this to underscore that the work you do here in Frederick County contributes to a larger legacy. Sometimes, it’s easy to forget that you are part of something so much bigger, but your work sets a standard of care that says: This is how we honor life. This is how we walk with one another through death.

This is how we love a community well.

I know, for instance, that Hospice is caring for my friend and fellow community builder Dana French. Dana has always been one of my most-valued mentors, especially when it comes to Leadership Frederick County. I love him for all he has so generously shared with me over the decades, and I am blessed to know that Hospice will care so well for someone who has taken such good care of us.

So take pride in this.

Take pride in knowing you belong to something larger than any one
individual. Together, you are part of something that is changing the world. You are part of a national and global movement in hospice and palliative
medicine – reshaping how society understands dignity and compassion at the end of life.”