Senior Service Network highlights 2023 Pillar of the Year: Bear Stevens with A Plus Hospice
Submitted by Kelsey Penrose on Fri, 05/12/2023 - 4:29pm
Hospice care is not often talked about, despite the fact that most people will experience hospice in some fashion during their lifetime, whether it’s for a parent, a loved one, or even themselves. Hospice care is what is provided as an individual is approaching the end of their life, ensuring comfort, care, and quality of life while being able to remain at home and surrounded by loved ones.
Craig “Bear” Stevens with A Plus Hospice has gone above and beyond serving his clientele, whether it's helping to organize a special motorcycle ride for a 100-year old WWII veteran in Memory Care, dressing up as Santa to visit patients, delivering medical equipment personally to at-home hospice patients, or simply spending time one-on-one with his clients.
Devon McCarthy, Administrative Nurse for A Plus Hospice, said their company – and the community as a whole – would not be the same without Bear.
“Bear is there for anything and everything,” McCarthy said “I don’t think he’s ever been asked to do anything that he hasn’t gone above and beyond to make happen. He does everything he can to make people’s lives easier.”
There are often overlaps between Memory Care patients and hospice patients, and Bear’s mission, said McCarthy, is to do anything to make someone smile.
“He delivers cakes for birthdays, he dresses as Santa for Christmas each year – which is so important to Memory Care patients,” McCarthy said. “Memory Care can be terrifying, but Santa is something that is familiar and makes everybody smile.”
When it comes to hospice care, Bear, McCarthy, and the entire team at A Plus Hospice Care do whatever they can to make the transition as easy and comfortable as possible.
“It’s a big decision,” McCarthy said. “When a referral comes in, we’ll work with families to determine if hospice care is the right choice for their situation. A lot of the time, we talk to the children of parents who don’t want to return to the hospital for aggressive treatments, and hospice care is the next step. We need to be able to carefully and tenderly have those conversations of what to expect.”
Bear is an integral part of their team, McCarthy said, because he goes above and beyond for each and every client.
“Our company would not be the same without him,” McCarthy said. “He’s such an amazing person – a big huggable bear.”
When Bear is not working to bring a smile to his client’s face, he can be found spending time with his wife and three children camping, playing sports, or enjoying the outdoors.
To learn more about A Plus Hospice, please visit https://www.aplushospicecare.com
