What are your favourite foods? 

What food do you NOT enjoy? 

These are the kind of questions that my mom was asked on her very first day at Hospice Halifax. 

Why? Because bad food impacts your quality of life. But good food nourishes the soul. 

My mom, Nadine, spent 28 days at Hospice Halifax last fall. I watched firsthand how having delicious home-cooked meals changed everything in my mom’s last weeks. 

There were so many things that we didn’t expect when my mom got admitted to Hospice Halifax…the air of joy around the building, everyone taking the time to get to know and to share moments with us. One night when every other patient and visitor in the building were getting the same meal, but Seoa, the cook, knew mom wouldn’t like it. So, she cooked her something else, without mom even asking for it. 

That was special. To feel seen and heard without asking. 

As mom settled into Hospice Halifax, she would send me pictures every day of her food. 

She was living again. 

She couldn’t go out and roll down hills or go on a big walk. Even going to the garden became too much for her. But she got to have homemade – like very well homemade – food that was hot and delivered right to her every day. It was healing for her soul.

For my mom, this truly made all the difference. But it wasn’t just about mom. There were days when nurses would notice that I hadn’t yet arrived before a meal, so they would ask mom if she wanted to wait so we could eat together. Hospice 

Halifax was always so willing to go above and beyond for us. 

One of our favourite meals the cooks made was Beef Bourguignon. So as mom’s birthday quickly approached, we started to plan a little celebration for her. Mom and I had a tradition of English Cream Tea to celebrate milestones together. And since a journey to our favourite tea shop in Dartmouth would be too much for her, I decided to do it all myself. So, I made the jam, the scones, and the cream and called to see if Hospice would surprise her. And, of course, they did!

And to top off the day, for her birthday dinner, Seoa made Beef Bourguignon just for us!!

Just a couple of days later, mom died. These were our last moments with mom, and they were full of her favourite people and food. It was the best it could have been.

Thank you for giving my mom and my family these incredible moments together in a space that allowed my mom to live right to the end, surrounded by her favourite people and, of course, favourite food.

And even more, thank you for ensuring that future patients and families will feel seen, heard, and taken care of at end-of-life. 

– Candyce