Daughter’s Gift Honors Father’s Care

“My father’s experience at the end of life with a hospice program in Santa Rosa had a huge influence on my decision to support our local nonprofit hospice program, Hospice of Napa Valley,” says long-time volunteer and Legacy Society Member Caroline Templeton.

Her father had pancreatic cancer and had been told he had three months to live. He not only ended up living a year, thanks to the compassionate care of his hospice team, but the spiritual care he received allowed him to see how loved he was. It brought peace to him and to their entire family before he passed away. This experience instilled in Caroline a passion for hospice care.

“In 1990, I volunteered for Hospice of Napa Valley when it was in St. Helena but had to stop once I began working for—and later owned and operated—Napa Valley Weddings. But 15 years later, when I retired, I knew I had to do something with my extra time. Hospice of Napa Valley’s new offices were just being completed here in Napa, so I rejoined as a volunteer. I spent years volunteering at the reception desk, which gave me the opportunity to see firsthand both the staff in action and the impact they made in people’s lives,” said Caroline. “All these years later and regardless of the name on the front of the building, the mission has stayed the same. I still help with office work and at the annual gala. I’ve never gotten over how kind they always are. That’s what also makes it such a great place to volunteer—they really value their volunteers.”

The other effect of her father’s passing was to demonstrate how important it was to have a good estate plan: he had everything so clearly designated with his estate that everyone in their large family came away feeling comfortable with his final wishes. “So, when I put together my estate plan, I made a list of organizations I wanted to support, and Providence Community Health Foundation Napa Valley was first on my list,” said Caroline.

Including a nonprofit as a beneficiary not only benefits the organization, it’s an easy, thoughtful way to ensure your final wishes reflect your own values. “Working on my list made me really evaluate what was important to me, and I’m proud how it shows my kids and grandkids how much I believe in the compassionate care Providence Hospice Napa Valley and Adult Day Health provide,” shares Caroline.

Providence Community Health Foundation Napa Valley was founded as Hospice of Napa Valley in 1979. For over 40 years, we’ve proudly served the Napa Valley—providing community-based care and education for those facing a serious illness, Alzheimer’s, or the end of life.

In 2018, we became part of Providence, a nonprofit health system to better serve our community and meet the challenges in healthcare today. Under the umbrella of Providence, we offer our unique continuum of care through PACE, Adult Day Health Napa Valley, Palliative Care Napa Valley, and Hospice Napa Valley. And, to ensure your donations continue to be used exclusively for our services, we formed Community Health Foundation Napa Valley.