Hospice of Visiting Nurse Service Hires Renown Hospice Chaplain

(Akron, OH - May 30, 2006) Rev. Samuel Oliver, M.Div., CHCE, has joined the Hospice of Visiting Nurse Service Care Center as an Inpatient Hospice Chaplain. Mr. Oliver is responsible for the spiritual care of the patients at the Care Center, and their families, including coordinating with community clergy and open discussions on "how dying people help us to live in the soul."

Rev. Oliver is an award-winning poet and author of numerous articles and books on grief issues, including "A Life in Review," "A Fish Named Ed," and "Integrating the Feminine Spirit." His first book, "What the Dying Teach Us," is endorsed by the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization. Rev. Oliver writes for three national hospice journals, and is also on those journals editorial review boards. He has been speaking at public engagements for over 15 years on a local, national and international level. His website, www.soulandspirit.org, on death and dying resources receives hundreds of hits per day.

"Dying people have much to teach us about living in soul. I have witnessed people of all races, ages, genders, and sexual orientation let go of the life they have come to know. One thing becomes clear 'everyone learns to love the life they have been given,'" Rev. Oliver said.

Rev. Oliver resides in North Ridgeville, Ohio.

For more information on Hospice of VNS, please call 330-665-1455, or visit www.vnsa.com.