Beverly’s Encore

“I don’t think I can.”

To play a grand piano again was one of St. Croix Hospice patient Beverly Nelson’s last wishes. But when the moment came, she wasn’t sure she could do it.

With a little encouragement from her Strawberry Point care team, Chaplains Tim and Leticia Hardin, Beverly placed her fingers on the keys and started playing.

And the music came right back.

At The Highlands, an Aase Haugen community, in Decorah, Iowa, Beverly began to play as members of her St. Croix Hospice care team sang along beside her, and the uncertainty that had filled the room was replaced by a smile.

Hospice is about caring for the whole person and making space for moments that bring meaning, connection and joy.

Sometimes, that means helping someone do something they love one more time.

And sometimes, it means simply reminding them they still can.