At the 178-bed M.M. Ewing Continuing Care Center, the Palliative Care Program provides comfort when it’s needed most. Each September, its committee enlists the community for support, hosting a chicken barbecue to raise funds for its initiatives within the nonprofit nursing home.
This year, the barbecue will be held on Thursday, Sept. 24, in the parking lot of Crosswinds Wesleyan Church, 3360 Middle Cheshire Road in Canandaigua. Called “Clucks for Bucks,” it starts at 3 p.m. and continues until sold out, with meals going for $15 apiece.
According to Palliative Care Committee Co-Chair Kaci Klein, a social worker at the nursing home, palliative care can include but is not limited to end-of-life care. “Its goal is to ease suffering and improve quality of life,” she said.
Klein said the committee fosters initiatives to address both physical and emotional as well as spiritual needs, both for residents and their families.
These have included:
- Specialized education for associates within the nursing home
- Comforting items for residents such as handmade quilts, stuffed animals, favorite foods, soft-lit lamps, and comforting music
- Information for families about the end-of-life process
- A “comfort cart” with water, snacks and toiletries for families keeping vigil
The committee’s first chicken barbecue was in 2013, and it remains their biggest fundraiser. Each year, they partner with Grove Company Barbecue of Naples.
With Recreation Therapist Patti “Chicken Patti” Forjone dancing on a nearby corner in a chicken suit to attract customers, volunteers including M.M. Ewing administrators, nurses, recreation therapists, and social workers roll up their sleeves to dish out the meals.
According to Tawny Kelledy, Klein’s co-chair and the manager of Recreation Therapy at the nursing home, they routinely sell 350 in just a few hours.
“The Palliative Care Committee at the M. M. Ewing Continuing Care Center is grateful and honored to be part of such a wonderful community,” Kelledy said. “The residents experience an improved quality of life thanks to the generosity of those in Canandaigua and the surrounding area.”
Clucks for Bucks meals include a half-chicken, salt potatoes, coleslaw, and a roll. The $15 cost is payable by cash, check, or credit card. There are no pre-sale meals available.
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