Ever since Corry D’Alessandro launched her home-based dessert business last summer, the New Jersey native has looked for ways to give back to the local community, which is why she has volunteered to provide treats for people in their final days, weeks, and months of life.
Next week, D’Alessandro, owner of Mother Truckin Eatz, will begin providing cupcakes to patients receiving care from Affinis Hospice, a non-profit organization that serves terminally ill patients in various parts of the state, including Augusta.
“I was just trying to find a way to spread some kindness and give a little happiness,” she said.
D’ Alessandro responded to a Facebook post created by Affinis Hospice Volunteer Coordinator, Jessica Hanson, who’s currently looking for local businesses that want to provide monthly cupcakes for their patients’ birthday celebrations.
“We try to find anything we can do to increase their quality of life,” Hanson said. “We’re focused on the life that’s left to enjoy.”
The hospice’s motto is “adding more life to each day.”
Besides helping patients celebrate their birthdays, the hospice also helps them create bucket list items. She shared an example about one of Affinis’s patients, a 75-year-old man who was dying of cancer and had always wanted to go skydiving. The man’s son said if she could find a place to take his dad skydiving, he would pay for it. Hanson found a place in Sylvania, where the man jumped out of a plane with his brother, son, and grandchildren.
“You don’t have to stop having joy,” she said.
Like many nonprofits, Affinis relies on support from the local business community. Besides Mother Truckin Eatz, Flowers On Broad has provided flowers for patients over the years.
“Being a nonprofit, our budget is obviously not the same as a larger company,” she said. “I just really value community partnerships.”
Hanson also values volunteers, which hospices are required to have, but since the pandemic began, she has seen a sharp decrease in its volunteer numbers.
While many think hospice patients are all older people, that’s not the case. Hanson has seen patients ranging in age from infants to 103 years old.
D’ Alessandro will also provide cupcakes for a children’s grief group the local Affinis office hosts.
“I’m trying to do something from my heart,” she said.
For more information or to find out how your business can help, visit affinishospice.org or call Hanson at 706-434-0421.