End-of-life decisions are difficult, and they are really hard to face if you’re alone. Harbor Hospice is an organization that has come along to aid in the assistance of people’s final stages of life. I was asked to be a board member of Harbor Hospice for… I was asked to be a member of the Harbor Hospice board by a friend of mine not so long ago, and I agreed to be a part of it. Because it’s always meant a lot to me to know that that comfort is there for people who need it on their way out, along with their families. I was aware of the organization by doing stories like this over the years, but I really didn’t get into the nuts and bolts of it like I should have because there’s only so much time and resources. To be a part of it on a deeper level is really a great honor for me. However, we have been working with people like Melissa DeWitt, who already worked for Harbor Hospice, and extended her passion for caring for people and being a part of their lives at their final times to what she does in her off time. She’s a horse lover. Through her equestrian love, she started an event four years ago, which was all about two friends getting together to take a horse ride and head on off into the country to benefit Harbor Hospice. Well, it’s grown, and it’s grown a lot. Today, Horses for Harbor Hospice is taking off on their fifth year, and it’s going to happen at the Muskegon County Fairgrounds. We caught up with Melissa and Nancy Smith, who is the manager of the Muskegon County Fairgrounds, to talk about this year’s event. And yes, indeed, Mr. Mustard is joining us once again. Lets head out to the fairgrounds and hear what’s going on for this year’s Horses for Harbor Hospice.
Those final moments of life are difficult, and to face them alone is nothing anybody wants to do. A long-term diagnosis of illness like cancer or maybe respiratory failure or any of that kind of stuff, it’s a long wait. And there’s a lot of unknowns for everybody when it comes to what’s next. It’s frightening. It’s expensive. It is also a time that that kind of support needs to come in for more than one place. Harbor Hospice does that. Melissa DeWitt is one of the people who are hands-on with the patients and clients and families that Harbor Hospice serves. She’s a nurse’s aide, and she works with people who are in their final days. Her relief from that comes from her time with her horses. Everybody needs a way to get out of that day-to-day stuff. It’s heavy, it’s hard, and it’s difficult to be that patient, caring and giving individual who is there for their needs and not take care of their own. Trust me, I know a thing or two about this. I’m not very good at taking care of my own personal needs. It can wear on you. To know that Melissa found her relief in horses, is really remarkable, and to see her change it into a bigger and better thing that is encompassing the friends who share the mission of her work, and it involves fun along with it, that’s how things work in Muskegon.
The event started 4 years ago, as I said earlier, in the idea of just some friends getting together, raise a few bucks for the horse ride, and turn it over to Harbor Hospice to help out. Amazing. Give back to your own work. How about that? Cool, right? As the event grew, and they found a little bigger home out at the Muskegon County Fairgrounds, it’s turned into an entire weekend. Yeah. You can camp. You can ride your horse. There’s going to be activities for kids. There’s going to be fun riding events for people to be a part of. There’s going to be events for trail rides. There’s going to be a nighttime trail ride. Fun. Can your horse glow? Mr. Mustard can. I tried to get him out of it. Actually, Mr. Mustard asked me to get him out of it. We have a special bond, me and Mr. Mustard.
Registration’s affordable. Proceeds all go to Harbor Hospice. And the community that you’ll be a part of, remarkable, equestrian lovers from all over the state, even out of the state, show up for this camping and fun. You’ve got a weenie roast on Friday night. You’ve got other concessions that will be there as well. And you’ve got like-minded people who all have been touched, either by Harbor Hospice or their horse in some way, shape, or form. When you bring all that together, that’s when miracles start to happen. So yeah, it’s a fundraiser. It’s also a community. It’s also a way to celebrate horses and caring for people and giving of yourself.
The details are all on the Harbor Hospice – Horses for Harbor Hospice page. Follow the Horses for Harbor Hospice event on Facebook.
