Creston Valley Hospice Society

Hospice societies provide support and care for people living with life-limiting illness and for people at the end of life, as well as family, friends and others affected by someone’s life-limiting illness or death. These societies also provide support and care for people experiencing bereavement and those who are grieving. The support and care offered by hospice societies aims to enhance quality of life and provide comfort, while maintaining people’s dignity. Hospice societies provide emotional, social, practical, spiritual, and grief and bereavement supports. Hospice societies use a whole-person approach that is person and family-centered. Their support and care are provided with compassion and recognize and respect the diverse aspects of a person’s identity and culture. Specially trained staff and volunteers deliver this support and care in a variety of settings, including the person’s home, longterm care facilities, assisted living facilities, hospice facilities or residences, hospitals, virtual platforms, or other community locations. Hospice societies are part of a broader system of formal and informal supports. In British Columbia, the services hospice societies provide and the way they provide them can vary, depending on which community they serve. Hospice societies are not the same as a hospice facility or residence which provides 24-hour medical care for people with palliative and end-of-life care needs. Only a few hospice societies operate a facility or residence.

What We Do?

Hospice is a free service of care which allows people to live until death, their families to live with them as they are dying and to go on living afterwards….

Our History

After World War 2, Dr. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross found drawings and carvings of butterflies on concentration camp walls. The butterfly symbolizes the transition between life and death, and is used by Hospice Societies worldwide.As an organization, Hospice was begun by Dr. Cicely Saunders in London, England, during the 1960’s at Saint Christopher’s Hospital (the saint of travelers). Dr Saunders was knighted in 1960 for her work in palliative care.In 1981 Dr. Helen Hays brought hospice to a hospital in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.In 1987, Dr. William Mitchell-Banks and Rev. Harry Haberstock founded the Creston Valley Hospice Society.

Office Hours

The Creston Valley Hospice Society (CVHS) office and library are located in the Creston Valley Funeral Services Building at 218 Northwest Blvd. Our growing library has a variety of books on hospice, grieving, and palliative care for both adults and children available for loan.Our CVHS coordinator, Lorraine, will be in the office one morning a week, usually Wednesday. Call ahead to confirm she’s there, or book an appointment at another time: (250) 428-7575.