Family shows appreciation for hospice

A piece of my mom will always be at Stepping Stone Hospice.

IN LOVING MEMORY: Seated on the garden bench that they kindly donated to Stepping Stone Hospice are Chantel Pienaar and her husband, Pieter-Ben, with Stepping Stone’s human resources manager, Sonia Thomson.

THE memorial garden at Stepping Stone Hospice & Care Services in New Market Park is a beautiful and tranquil space for quiet contemplation, as well as a gathering place for families and patients to spend precious moments together.

The hospice recently received a generous donation of garden furniture from Chantel Pienaar and family in memory of her mom, Hannelie Koen, who died at the age of 56 in the In-Patient Unit on Valentine’s Day last year.

“We donated the garden furniture as I feel such a bond with Stepping Stone Hospice and the people there,” says Chantel. “I appreciated that they were always very honest with us when it came to my mom’s condition. It was very difficult to hear, but we needed that.

“The manner in which the staff at the In-Patient Unit treated her and our family was very special. She passed in a loving, humane and dignified way, and I feel like I can still go there whenever I need to.

“I believe that a piece of my mom will always be at Stepping Stone Hospice, so I will continue to do what I can for them,” she said.