10 Wishes Fulfilled in Hospice

November is National Home Care and Hospice Month, a time to pay tribute to the millions of hard-working nurses, home care aides, therapists, social workers, and others making a difference in the lives of the patients and families they serve in hospice care.

Hospice workers are everyday heroes who go above and beyond to care for their patients every day, but sometimes they have an even more special role. They are often the planners, witnesses, or facilitators of their clients’ end-of-life wishes.

The emotional power of these kinds of stories is so strong that they’ve often gone viral on social media, like a Wisconsin man’s beer with his sons, or a South Carolina man’s choice to be baptized.

Here are 10 recent last wishes that warmed our hearts:

1. A woman’s request to stay with her cat “Baby” was granted and viewed by 2 million on TikTok in a video filmed by her granddaughter.
2. A Vietnam Veteran car enthusiast’s desire to see a car show from his driveway was fulfilled in Oklahoma.
3. A Michigan hospice patient was able to enjoy some pizza with friends and family and play the harmonica in a blues “jam” he called Peterpalooza.
4. A Georgia woman and lifelong Elvis fan was granted a final wish to see Graceland.
5. A cancer patient in the UK got help from hospice staff to wed his fiancee.
6. A young, terminally ill patient had his wish fulfilled by Johnny Depp in a video message as Captain Jack Sparrow.
7. A Rhode Island couple moved up their wedding date and changed their location to the hospital so the bride’s father could walk his daughter up the aisle.
8. An Illinois man and Army Veteran got a ride in a Harley sidecar.
9. A 100-year-old Montana woman was able to cross Ziplining off her bucket list before her death.
10. An 89-year-old Southern California man enjoyed skydiving with the help of his hospice team.

One of the most famous last wishes came true for former President Jimmy Carter this October who lived long enough in hospice to reach his 100th birthday and cast a vote for his preferred presidential candidate. His stay in hospice for 20 months has been both unusual and instructive about the positive aspects of hospice care.

Many wishes are part of a bucket list, like this 99-year-old woman’s desire to ride on a hot air balloon. The nursing home’s resident was granted her wish by “Physicians for Wishes.” The Physicians for Wishes program was started by Dr. Gregory Taylor, an ER doctor from Fishers, Indiana, to help grant wishes to those who were seriously or critically ill to bring a smile to them.

Many other nonprofit programs help grant the wishes for adventures and items on bucket lists of those nearing the end of life. Some of them include Gifted Wishes in Oregon, the 3 Wishes Project and the Dream Foundation in California, and the Senior Dreams Wish Program in Washington.

For those entering hospice, it’s important to share conversations with caregivers and family members about what’s most important at life’s end so that these final wishes can come true.