Charles Boling, a U.S. Air Force veteran and retired history teacher, was already experiencing Parkinson’s Disease, when he suffered a broken hip in 2016. His daughter Elizabeth and her siblings Daniel and Malinda were advised to seek hospice care.

Elizabeth Boling, a professor at Indiana University Bloomington and the closest to her father geographically, sought help from IU Health Bloomington Hospice. “Hospice saved our lives,” she said. 

For 20 months, Elizabeth Boling was continually impressed by the many ways hospice staff exceeded her expectations. Their first act was installing a hospital bed for Mr. Boling’s safety, then acquiring and installing a lift for caregivers to use when moving him. Elizabeth Boling said hospice staff provided comfort, solace and strength at every stage of this uncertain and exhausting journey. 

“The folks who worked with us clearly cared about my father,” she said. “They talked to him as a person, not just another sick old man. It was clear that they cared about the quality of his life down to the last day of it.” 

When her father passed away in October 2018, Elizabeth Boling and her siblings gifted $10,000 from his estate to Bloomington Hospice, the oldest and largest provider of end-of-life services in South Central Indiana, and the only remaining not-for-profit hospice in the region. 

Charles Boling died with dignity, and his children have ensured that others can do the same. To learn how you can make a contribution that honors IU Health caregivers, visit iuhealth.org/foundation.