It is not exactly the most festive activity to plan on December 31. A visit to the hospice in Udenhout. Still, more than 100 people did it today. The Almost Home House, as the small-scale hospice is called, opened its doors to everyone who always wanted to come in.
Jan van Gorp is one of the visitors. He has known the hospice for years, but it is not so easy to ‘just’ walk in. Especially because with only two rooms, there are almost always people staying there. Coincidentally, that is not the case today.
Nicole Langerak is the owner of the Almost Home House. She says that the last guest died on Monday morning. That is sad, but it now also offers the opportunity to show the entire complex to anyone who wants to. The living room and two bedrooms, overlooking the garden.
Organizing an Open House is actually not possible for the hospice. Something like that costs money, and the institution does not make money from the guests who stay there. It is the municipality of Tilburg that has provided this option. The Almost Home House has received a subsidy to bring people closer together on this day.
Most people think a subsidy for something ‘fun’. My question is whether hospice fits into this. “What often goes unmentioned is that it can also be a wish for guests in the hospice to die. That people can be genuinely happy about that,” says Nicole.
An Open Day is also nice for the many volunteers. More than 35 work at the hospice. The visitors give them pats on the back and compliments. “People are surprised that it looks so homely. And especially grateful that there are volunteers who make the final phase for people staying here as pleasant as possible. And the great thing is, two new volunteers signed up during this Open Day.”
Jan van Gorp wholeheartedly agrees. “It’s special how people want to dedicate themselves to others. Even at not the easiest times. I think that’s very clever.” His wife Henriette agrees. “It is so difficult to support someone who is dying at home. The fact that this can be done here is really very valuable.”
She is even thinking about becoming a hospice volunteer herself in a few years. “And afterwards, when I’m ninety or so, that I can just stay in Udenhout, that’s a nice thought.”
“Not for the time being,” says husband Jan. “This is wonderful, it really is. But I hope I still have a few more years.”