Santa Barbara, CA, July 24, 2023 – It is with a combination of sadness, gratitude, and great respect that Hospice of Santa Barbara (HSB) shares the news that Ann Smithcors, HSB’s volunteer of over 40 years, passed away peacefully at home with her children, Mark and Lynn, at her bedside.
Smithcors’s longstanding history with HSB began in 1982, only eight years after HSB first opened its doors in 1974. Throughout her time with HSB, Smithcors accumulated an impressive catalog of volunteer experience. She was a volunteer at Leigh Block House, a Bereavement follow-up volunteer, and a No One Dies Alone (NODA) program volunteer. She also served many patients as a Patient Care Volunteer, and in 2016, Smithcors was one of three volunteers honored with the Volunteer Award at HSB’s annual Heroes of Hospice event.
The daughter of a nurse, Smithcors helped her grandfather, a doctor, treat patients while growing up in England. She went on to become a nurse and midwife, delivering more than 200 babies. Smithcors moved to the U.S. in 1960, where she continued her nursing career. She started volunteering at HSB in the early 1980s, after retiring. Volunteering allowed her to do something she had always wanted: to spend time with patients and their families.
“As I reflect on my volunteer years at Hospice [of Santa Barbara], I am grateful to the many patients and families who by their gifts have enriched my life– each person unique and each experience different,” wrote Smithcors in a letter.
She often expressed how grateful she was to the many patients and families who had enriched her life, however Smithcors was truly a gift to those whose lives she touched over her many years with HSB.
“I had the great fortune to work alongside Ann and share in care with her over the last 15 years. She not only had a heart of gold, but she managed to bring peace and build trust with even the most challenging clients,” said HSB Patient Care Services Manager, Tianna Swede. “If Ann was assigned to a client with me, I could always count on her empathy and steadfast commitment to quality care. She is missed, but will always be remembered as a fantastic volunteer with a great sense of British humor, compassion and dedication.”
Selfless, generous, kind, thoughtful, a big heart, a giver of life, a source of inspiration, passionate, and brave were just some of the traits that highlighted her personality. Smithcors was a strong woman who faced every challenge in her life with courage and dignity. She touched the lives of so many people and will be deeply missed by everyone.
Hospice of Santa Barbara
Hospice of Santa Barbara provides professional counseling, support groups, and patient care services free of charge to individuals and families who are grieving the death of a loved one or experiencing the impact of a life-threatening illness. Hospice of Santa Barbara also provides counseling in our offices and on fifteen local junior and high school campuses to children and teens who are grieving the loss of a loved one. For more information about Hospice of Santa Barbara including volunteer opportunities or to help support these free services, call (805) 563-8820 or visit www.hospiceofsantabarbara.org.
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