When *Annie Delgado thinks back to the day her husband first began to visibly decline, the memory is as clear as the Florida sky overhead. “We were sitting outside under the carport,” she recalls. “And all of a sudden, my husband, Michael, who was six-foot-two, just started falling down like a wilted flower.”
With the help of a neighbor Annie got him inside the house and called 911. That hospital visit marked the beginning of a journey neither of them expected. Michael was diagnosed with prostate cancer. He fought it for nearly four and a half years. Eventually, it metastasized to his bones. But if you asked Annie about those years, she won’t start with the word “cancer.” She’ll start with “strength.”
“He was so active,” she says. “Even after the diagnosis, he was mowing the lawn, re-shingling the roof. He just didn’t stop. That was who he was.”
Over time, though, treatments took their toll. The strong, capable man who once fixed everything around the house began to need help himself. “There came a time when he needed more support,” Annie says. “That’s when he started hospice care with the VNA.”
From the beginning, VNA Hospice stepped in not just with medical equipment, but with something deeper: reassurance. A hospital bed was delivered. Oxygen was set up. Nurses brought blood pressure equipment and patiently taught Annie how to use it herself. “It was a lot of pressure,” she admits. “I wanted the very best for him. I wanted him comfortable. But he was a very resistant kind of person. He didn’t want help. And I was the sole caregiver.”
That’s where VNA Hospice made all the difference. “It was extra support,” Annie says. “They helped carry the weight.” Michael received hospice care at home for a few months. The nurses navigated complex challenges with gentleness and skill. Then one day, a hospice nurse gently asked Annie a question that changed everything. “Would you be interested in respite care at the VNA Hospice House?” The nurse explained that it would offer relief — for both of them. Annie and Michael didn’t hesitate. “We both said yes.”
A few days later, a room became available and transportation was arranged. Annie met him there. “He didn’t last long,” she says. “The second day, his breathing slowed. He passed on the third day.”
And yet, when Annie talks about those final days, her voice fills not with sorrow, but with awe. “VNA Hospice House was one of the most spiritual and beautiful experiences we could have had,” she says. “We’re both very spiritual people, and the care, the affection — the overall experience — it was amazing.”
From nurses to aides to the chef, every person treated both patient and family as cherished guests. “Even the chef would come over and ask what I wanted for breakfast,” Annie says with a small laugh. “He’d say, ‘Can I prepare you anything?’ That just blew me away.”
One nurse made a suggestion that Annie still treasures. “She asked if I wanted to lie next to him,” Annie says. “I was shocked. I said, ‘I would love to, but how would that even work?’”
The staff gently shifted Michael in his bed so Annie could climb in beside him. Though he was much taller and broader, they made it work. “I got to sleep next to him,” she says. “That was extremely special. I was so surprised they would allow that. But we did.”
Her pastor came and prayed over Michael. The room was quiet, peaceful. “The environment at VNA Hospice House — the care and nurturing, not just for the patient but for the family members — was amazing,” Annie says. “You felt it the moment you walked in.”
Even after Michael passed, the care didn’t stop. “They asked if I had one of his shirts,” she says. “They offered to make a pillow.” Annie brought one of Michael’s favorite “Florida shirts,” a button-down with palm trees, purchased after they moved south more than 15 years ago. The volunteer team transformed it into a small pillow that now rests on her sofa. “It means so much to me,” she says.
Annie also found comfort in VNA’s Ceremony of Remembrance. “People spoke. There was music. I loved all of that,” she says. “And the VNA in general. It’s just a wonderful, wonderful program,” she says. “And I hope, sooner rather than later, to volunteer at VNA Hospice House.”
*Not her real name
