Insights & Information

Teddys from Triad touch hearts at Hospice

A 5-year-old took her teddy bear out of the bag and put it in the bed with her great grandmother; the wife of another patient gave one to her husband for the same reason—to keep him company and ease his passing.

Those stories and more were the result of the second Teddys from Triad deliveries to hospice patients and their families by the Harbor of Hope cancer outreach ministry.

The special Bearavan of Harbor of Hope volunteers with 58 teddy bear-topped gift bags left Triad’s parking lot after church Dec. 14 bound for the Kate B. Reynolds Hospice Home in Winston-Salem and the Hospice Home at High Point.

In December 2013, Harbor of Hope delivered 24 to Kate B. Reynolds Hospice Home in Winston-Salem in the first delivery. This year, Harbor of Hope added the High Point location as it also increased the number of gift bags.

“Christmas is a joyous time of year for many of us, but, for some, it’s a time when they face or find themselves preparing for unimaginable losses,” said Terry Corns, a cancer survivor who founded the ministry with his wife, Kim, in January 2013. “Last year’s project was such a success and so well received that we wanted to do more.

“In High Point, the nurse delivering the bags told us that one of the elderly patients removed the teddy bear after getting her bag, wrapped it up in a blanket, and started hugging and rocking it,” Corns added. “She told the nurse that the bear was cold, and needed to be wrapped up. Several of the patients had small grandchildren, and they seemed to enjoy the candies and other treats in the bags, too.”

Harbor of Hope volunteers met at Triad to assemble the bags on Dec. 13, and split up into two teams to make the deliveries Dec. 14 after church.

Kim Corns, Charlie and Diane Pearson, Harold and Patsy Simcox, and Daniel and Angie Steele traveled to Winston-Salem; Diane Brown, Terry Corns, Michele Hailey, and Mark Quinn traveled to High Point.

Along with the teddy bears and a postcard from Harbor of Hope and Triad, each bag contained pecan pies, Life Savers, York Peppermint Patties, hand sanitizer, body wash, notepads, pens, ChapStick®, Dove chocolate bars, peanuts, Werther’s Caramels, gum, trail mix, peppermint butter mints, cookies, and other candy.

In addition to creating a record number of gift bags and adding a second location, Corns said 2014 also marked the first gifts to nurses.

“Last year the nurses were so excited about what we were doing,” Corns said. “Some teared up as they thanked us for what we were doing. When we were sharing these stories at one of our Harbor of Hope meetings back in September, my wife, Kim, suggested that we do a basket for the nurses. It’s a small gesture and thanks for the way they selflessly give of themselves on a daily basis. It takes special people to work in this environment every day. The nurses were blown away that we actually thought about them.”

Editor’s note: Harbor of Hope meets 7 p.m. at Triad on the second Monday of every month in the Youth Room. Nearly 30 people attend the meetings which are open to anyone in the community and feature food, fellowship, music and an inspirational speaker. Members support one another through prayer, emails, phone calls, visits, and cards.

Phase 2 Shot of TBC B&W 17

Join us Sunday at

9:00am Traditional Worship
10:30am Contemporary Worship