Edith Buchanan
As told by Carol McCombs, daughter and current Cedar Valley Hospice volunteer
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“I would describe my mom, Edith Buchanan, as a generous and loving person. She enjoyed working with my dad at the candy company, Buchanan Candy Company, which started out on East 4th Street in the 50s. They were married in 1953 and had three kids.
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She was always entertaining the Buchanan family – she came from a large family of 13, and they always came to Waterloo. She was very gracious, she was very funny and she was always dressed up. She was very beautiful and well put together. She had so many good traits and was always there to help everybody.
Mom had COPD later in her life and eventually died from lung disease. She struggled for about five years. At the time, I had a friend that was involved with Cedar Valley Hospice and said to call, so I did. I decided to put her on the program because she wasn’t getting relief from her pain in the nursing facility. By that time, dementia had set in, and she never was one to complain, but when the pain got bad, you could tell.
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After I called, Mom went to the Cedar Valley Hospice Home to help get her pain under control. She looked around at the room and said to me, ‘Oh, this is the nicest hotel.’ It was so funny. She immediately became more relaxed. She was happy there; she took it all in – and her breathing normalized. Then, she went back to the facility and was OK for a little bit. Then she fell and broke her hip, which really was a setback. They took her back to the Hospice Home to try and help with her pain and was there three days until she died. She was 90. The care Mom received had such an impact that I became a patient-family volunteer in 2007.
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Every time I have gone to the Hospice Home (both with Mom and in the years afterwards), you feel this calm that comes over you. They explain everything and their plans are well-thought-out. You couldn’t ask for better care. They welcome all the family members; it’s a place where everyone can gather together, which makes the process easier because your family is there.
I’ve had so many family members and people I know receive Cedar Valley Hospice services. It has been a miracle – I don’t know what they would have done without help referring them, as they really needed support. I try to talk to people about the benefits and that it can be a positive experience from the care that is given. It’s hard to explain to people the positive side when they’re going through a difficult time, but the atmosphere at the Hospice Home makes it like home to me.”
"She looked around at the room [at the Hospice Home] and said to me, 'Oh, this is the nicest hotel.' She immediately became more relaxed."
– Carol McCombs, daughter and Cedar Valley Hospice volunteer
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