| Letter from the President
Dear Friends,
As we enter the Thanksgiving season for North Americans, we here in Boquete have much for which to be thankful. For one thing, Covid cases in Panama have steeply diminished. As of this writing there are only 1,140 cases in the country with only 16 serious or critical cases. This is what remains of the 990,111 cases the country has experienced. We are very thankful for this decrease and hope to be able to soon provide full hospice care again for Boquete families. As of November 6 there were no new cases in the country. Progress indeed!
I recently gave a talk about our services to the Boquete Rotary club. Afterwards I was approached by several people who were interested in volunteering. Our next training session starts January 23 and we already have seven new trainees signed up. There are still a couple slots left, so if you know of anyone interested in our work please have them contact Dave Nichols. We are thankful for the continuing interest in serving the community through our organization, and especially for the dedicated personnel who teach our courses.
In another meeting I joined representatives from other local volunteer organizations to form a committee to investigate ways to coordinate services and limit duplication, while discovering new ways to provide community service. This fledgling group, called the Boquete Volunteer Collaborative, was began by Dr. Rod Gotulla, an active BHH volunteer. Lesley Hughes will be our representative to the group, and we will report more as the effort advances. We already share information with our clients about other service groups when we encounter needs that our services do not cover. Now these organizations can work together to further enhance our efforts in the community.
Our fall Blood Drive was held November 19 and later in this issue we recognize the many people who worked hard to make it another big success! We are very thankful for their work, which assures that there will be continuing supply of free blood for anyone who lives in Boquete when the need arises.
We can all give thanks that Boquete has so many organizations dedicated to improving the lives of its citizens, and BHH can count itself a proud member of this generous community effort. All of our teams are doing a wonderful job of making this possible.
Be well,
John Earle | | | During this holiday season and every day of the year, we wish you and your family love, happiness, and health. It is a time to be grateful, a time to remember, and a time to embrace those who enrich our lives and care for the community. We are thankful for many things, but most of all, dear volunteers and donors, we are thankful for YOU!
~Your friends at Boquete Health and Hospice | | | IMPORTANT NOTICES TO THE MEMBERSHIP OF BOQUETE HEALTH AND HOSPICE | | | | Dates for the Election of Officers for BHH
The annual election of Officers and the appointment of Patient Care Coordinators will take place January 11, 2023 at the BHH Annual Meeting at the Animales Event Center in Alto Boquete at 10:00am and via Zoom.
Proposed Slate of Officers
President: Open
Vice President–Operations: Kat McKay
Vice President–Community Outreach: Lesley Hughes
Treasurer: Bill Hinrichsen
Secretary: Open
Patient Care Coordinators
Bev Tyler
Craig Gatrel
Denise Daniels
Nominations for the five officer positions will open November 28, 2022 and will close December 28, 2022. Nominations must be emailed to VP Kat McKay at katnukesu@gmail.com by December 28 for inclusion in the slate. Nominations from the floor will also be accepted at the Annual Meeting, which will be held in-person at the Animales Event Center in Alto Boquete on January 11, 2023 at 10am. It will also be broadcast via Zoom.
Before you make a nomination, please speak with the person you are nominating to make sure they are willing. To be eligible for nomination, the nominee must be a member in good standing for at least one year and have a good understanding of BHH operations. By-Laws Amendment Approved
On November 9 the amendment of the by-laws of BHHF was approved by the members present at the meeting. The primary change is the creation of a second vice president position to split the responsibilities. The VP–Operations will be responsible for the Education team, the Volunteer Coordinator, and the IT team. The VP–Community Relations will be responsible for the Communications team, the Translation team, the Ambassadors, the Community Outreach team, and the Events and Fundraising team. With the addition of the second vice president role, the goal is to provide a better experience for the volunteers and allow the Council to better manage policies.
| | | Another Spectacular Blood Drive! | | Our Blood Donor Heroes from top left to bottom right:
Sherry Shirritt; Leslie Sherling and a hospital worker; Edith Miranda and Bill Hinrichsen. Denise Daniels; Valorie Tintinger, Gisela Remsen, and others. Tamera Garrison; Raquel Coba. Liesel Erasmus; Edith Miranda and Bill Hinrichsen. Heather Paton. | | | We are thrilled with the turnout for the November BHH Blood Drive. We collected 53 pints of blood and our True Donor Heroes will help 159 lives! Many others who couldn't donate made generous matching fund donations. Our blood drives have now collected 400 pints of blood since we started in June, 2019. Since every pint can help three people, we have positively affected 1,200 lives!
Kudos to Laurie Collier, Carmen Restrepo, Janice Norris, Chris McCall, Leslie Sherling, Ginny Woolley, Bill Hinrichsen, Kat McKay, Sofia Valdes, Sherry Shirritt, Edith Miranda, John Quintana, Deb Hornstra, our guest performer Scotty McConachiethe Music Man, and many, many others who dedicated their time, effort, and blood to this worthy cause. We appreciate everyone who participated in making this a huge success and are proud to say that many of our BHH members donated. And our Matching Fund Drive donations exceeded all expectations! A special thanks to the creativity and commitment of Chris McCall for creating fabulous event flyers and nudging us to start promoting the matching fund early!
Our blood donor program is unique in Panama and exists to help our Boquete community when someone unexpectedly needs blood. BHH organizes blood drives several times a year in Boquete to help fill this urgent need for our community. After so many years, it's a well-organized operation. "It was so easy, fast, and painless. Easy peasy!" said Heather Paton, a first-time donor and Boquete newcomer who was impressed with the efficiency and professionalism of the blood drive team.
If you or someone you know needs blood, text/Whatsapp +507-6590-2000 or call 507-6781-9250, Monday through Friday, 8am-5pm, Saturdays/Sunday, 9am-1pm.
If you would like to participate in the next blood drive, stay tuned to future newsletters and BHH social media posts.
| | | We Honor and Appreciate the Blood Donors Who have Donated Multiple Times! | |  | | Eight-time blood donor Gia Pallone (left) and seven-time donor Carlos Kattengell (middle, with Laurie Collier). | |  | | To everyone who contributed their blood, funds, time, or talent!
Left: Seven-time donor Giovanelli Cianca. | |  | | More Blood Donor Heroes! Top row: The blood drive is always a well-planned and efficient operation. Valorie Tintinger. Middle row: Edith Miranda, the proud purple banner of BHH, and Heidrun Wöhite. Bottom row: Gia Pallone and Sherry Shirritt. | |
When Disaster Dave Calls, Please Answer the Phone! | | | How is your volunteer experience with BHH? Well, that's what I am trying to find out with the survey. Thank you to those of you who answered. The responses were interesting and gave the Council some good information for their planning session for next year.
So, what's next you ask? Simple, to complete the survey process, I will be calling the people who didn't answer the survey to find out if you are still active in BHH. If not, we'd like to know so we can plan our ability to serve the community. No harm, no foul. And if you are still part of BHH, any ideas you have for making your experience better are welcome.
So please answer when I call. I am not selling extended warranties.
Dave Nichols
Volunteer Coordinator | | | New Volunteer Training in January
On January 23, 25, and 27 a class for anyone interested in volunteering for BHH will be held from 9am to 3pm at the Animales Event Center in Alto Boquete. Attendance at all three days is required. | | | Contact Dave Nichols at disasterdave@yahoo.com for an application and more information. The vaccination requirement has been lifted and all are welcome. Please note that those not vaccinated cannot be on teams that deal with the public.
The class is filling up fast and it is exciting that there is so much interest in this training. It covers the services provided by Boquete Health and Hospice and there is much to learn. In addition to the widely-advertised blood drives, BHH has developed a music program for patients and caregivers, offers meal deliveries for qualified patients, and provides equipment loans, medical translation services, and more.
All BHH services are free. We are a volunteer organization. After completing the New Volunteer Training class, students are free to volunteer for their program of interest. We are currently in the planning stages for new events and fundraisers to continue providing new and innovative services.
BHH is not a medical provider. Most of our volunteers do not have a medical background. Our focus is to provide the information necessary to help the community access the help that is needed.
BHH general meetings are currently held on Zoom on the second Wednesday of each month. Each month focuses on a topic of interest to BHH members. In November we discussed basic first aid for medical issues such as heart attacks and diabetic emergencies. Some future topics include Parkinsons signs/symptoms/treatments, what's needed in an emergency, a comparison of CSS/Minsa/general doctors/internal doctors, dental care/dental emergencies, and others to be announced.
There is no other organization like BHH in all of Panama. Our volunteers are well trained and uniquely qualified to help improve the quality of life for all in our community. Both Panamanians and expats benefit from our educational programs and services.
Participating in our New Volunteer Training class is the best way to learn about BHH. You are not obligated to be a volunteer once you have completed the training. We have learned that the enthusiasm and respect for BHH is contagious and after training most people choose to join our volunteer efforts. | | | Live Q & A Spreads Word on BHH | | Patient Care Coordinator Craig Gatrel recently spoke to a large group about BHH during a live Q & A session held by Relocate to Panama Tours. Our Being Prepared program was a highlight of the call and Craig emphasized that dealing with health emergencies and end-of-life decisions in Panama is much different than doing so in expat home countries.
With our permission, participants had the option to buy the online version of our Being Prepared For End of Life in Boquete manual, and Rod Larrivee and Oscar Peña, the owners of RPT, generously matched the full amount sent to BHH. Thanks, Rod and Oscar! We appreciate the donation as well as the opportunity to share this vital information with people interested in making a new home in Panama.
The next Being Prepared training is January 12 and we look forward to RPT participants joining our class.
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