When Don Hill passed away last March, his family wanted to do something to acknowledge the care and support he and the family had received through the Chilliwack Hospice Society.
Don had been diagnosed with cancer in April of 2011. And although he fought hard against the disease, it was a battle the former CFB Chilliwack soldier would not win. In January of 2013, on the advice of his family doctor, Don was moved into Cascade hospice.
“My father was a strong, proud man,” says Shirley Pye. “The care given to him and our mother at such a hard time in our lives was a blessing to all of us. We were all able to spend quality time with dad knowing he was well taken care of.”
On March 3, with his wife by his side, Don passed away.
Shirley and her husband, Richard Pye own Chilliwack River Valley Natural Honey on Adams Road. It’s a popular stop on the Circle Farm Tour and Greendale Craft Crawl, where visitors not only purchase a variety of honeys and honey products, but learn a little something about how it is produced.
In December, visitors also learned a little bit about Hospice. The family had set aside an area with a selection of Christmas-themed items. All the money raised through the sale of those items was donated to the Chilliwack Hospice Society.
Says Shirley: “The support we had from our customers was overwhelming and in a month we raised $450.”
But they wanted to do more. So next Saturday, on March 8, they’re hosting the first annual “Don’s Day for Hospice.”
On that day, 100 per cent of all sales at the store will go to the Chilliwack Hospice Society.
“We will have coffee, and juice and some of the cookies my dad loved,” says Shirley.
Chilliwack River Valley Natural Honey is located at 43476 Adams Road, Chilliwack. For more information, call 604-823-7400.