Blake Ashley of Hospice Family Care, right, shares stories with Ray Jaekel, 80, over dinner at Chili's, 1640 W. Valencia Road. Ashley has been coming to this South Side restaurant with Jaekel for about six months.

Chris Coduto / Arizona Daily Star

Other articles by Loni Nannini:

Moments of caring shared with kids in need Ofrece CARE Fair servicios para la salud gratuitos en un solo lugar It's an annual healthy shopping spree for families in need Business duo sees big returns in helping displaced kids 'Red Hot' summer fundraiser to benefit 2 causes for children Feeding children really satisfies Canines help kids connect Just volunteer, and you — yes, you — can be a superhero Volunteerism: Rx for self-absorption Mother's Day gifts brighten holiday for women in shelters

Sales and Marketing
Xentel
Expanding call center. New Hiring Bonus! Trades/Construction
Baker Brothers Plumbing
Dry Wallers Trades/Construction
Pioneer Landscaping
Yard Person/Loader Operator Production and Manufacturing
Pioneer Landscaping
Crushing Crew Driver/Transportation
CPC Southwest Materials
Drivers Trades/Construction
Pioneer Landscaping
Yard Person/Loader Operator Driver/Transportation
RENZENBERGER
ROAD AND YARD VAN DRIVERS

During the past 10 months, Blake Ashley's volunteer work with Hospice Family Care has helped him learn more about life, death and living in the moment.

"I think when you are confronted with the mortality of others you can't help but be confronted with your own mortality and the natural response to that is to try and live your life fully in the moment to the best of your ability," said Ashley, who became involved with Hospice after deciding he wanted to explore issues that really matter, including man's confrontation with impermanence.

As an environmental attorney for the City of Tucson, Ashley is no stranger to confrontation. The 49-year-old believes the best way to meet death — like most challenges — is head on. He hopes to make the most out of his patients' remaining lives by helping to make each minute as satisfying for them as possible.

"I think life is best lived in the moment and in the moment (my patient) is as alive as you and me," Ashley said. "It is not as if he has lost the ability to appreciate his life any more than you or I have, and in fact you could argue that since his time is limited, he may experience it a different way — perhaps a more intense way."

Ensuring a more comfortable end of life for patients and their families is the primary goal of Hospice Family Care, according to volunteer coordinator Vicki Smith. To that end, the organization provides an array of services — including nursing, social work, counseling and chaplains — for terminally ill patients with a life expectancy of six months or less.

The Hospice Family Care force of 50 volunteers also includes companions who aid patients with various tasks from running errands and shopping to simply spending time together. Their purpose is to help patients remain in their own homes as opposed to going to a hospital.

Smith said that Hospice Family Care treats about 130 patients at any given time; 90 percent of those are at home. She described the hospice philosophy as very inclusive, providing comfort medically, spiritually and socially for patients and their families.

"If you have pain, that is all there is," Smith said. "But if pain is taken care of, sometimes the most wonderful opportunities exist for communication with people you love: things that you want to say, things you have regretted saying, thanks to people for things they have done. It is a powerful time of life that can be just as happy as it is sad."

Ashley said he has been very impressed with every aspect of the program, particularly the organization's willingness to deal with the difficult issues associated with death and dying.

"They don't shy away but wade right into the human issues and the unknown," he said. "They understand that issues of spirituality, for example, are part of this and don't shy away from it and hide behind a clinical facade."

Ashley's personal spirituality and his involvement in meditation through the Tucson Community Meditation Center have played an integral role in his volunteerism.

"Meditation tends to be introspective and it seems to me that getting involved in helping someone else balances that out," he said. "If all you do is focus on your own experience, I think you get a little off-center."