Plymouth Township Resident Turns Volunteering Into Longtime Calling

Marie Beaghan is a hugger.

Maybe that's why when she walks through the halls of Angela Hospice in Livonia, where she has been a volunteer since the facility opened in 1987, everyone from the staff to the patients to fellow volunteers get bright smiles on their faces when she greets them—almost as if she's an old friend or family member.

"Every time she sees you, she'll stop to give you a hug," said Lisa Norton, who does public relations for the hospice. "She's the sweetest lady."

Norton said Beaghan is one of the longest-serving volunteers among the more than 450 Angela Hospice has on its roles.

Beaghan, a former nurse and a Plymouth Township resident of 16 years, started volunteering twice a week with her husband 23 years ago and has been doing it ever since.

"I just love working with the patients," Beaghan said. "I like doing anything that is hands-on—giving back rubs, baths or just holding their hand or talking to them."

But as much as Beaghan gives the patients, she said she gets just as much—or more—in return.

"I get such a great satisfaction from helping them," she said. "A lot of times they'll share thoughts and fears with us that are hard to talk about with their own families."

And when her own husband died eight years ago, Beaghan said her support system at the hospice helped her cope.

"It was hard at first, because volunteering here is something we started and did together," Beaghan said. "But everyone here was very supportive of me, and they knew him, too, so they grieved with me."

Although Beaghan said she now does less physical work since she was involved in a bad car accident a few years ago, hospice nurse Peggy DeVos said Beaghan continues to be one of the most reliable volunteers the facility has.

"She's there whenever you need her," DeVos said. "And the other volunteers really lean on her and look up to her."

As part of her volunteer duties, Beaghan trains and mentors other volunteers who come to the hospice.

"Marie leads the volunteer-training sessions, but then also orients new volunteers a little further," Norton said.

And Beaghan said that she recognizes what she gives back to the hospice by working with fellow volunteers.

"It helps these people be better volunteers," she said. "It's a big thing to work with these patients—it's not like working at a dime store. I help them feel more confident in helping the patients."

According to Norton, volunteers have provided more than 35,000 hours of service since the hospice opened.

"They do everything from patient care to office work to baking to gardening to fundraising," Norton said.

She also said volunteers spearhead a number of events for patients and their families, such as weekly tea parties and ice cream socials.

"There are just a lot of things we do here that we wouldn't be able to do if we didn't have volunteers," Norton said.

For Beaghan, the reward she gets is from doing work she believes in.

"I believe that we help the patients here be calmer and die with dignity," she said. "And to me, that's the most important thing."