We make calls and visits to private homes, hospitals, hospice sites and skilled nursing centers, and share each visit with the team. Our team members give and receive input and support from the minister. We meet monthly for check-in, training, mutual support and to plan educational opportunities for the congregation. To learn more about our team members, click here.
Pastoral Care during Covid-19
In these challenging times, we worry about each other. We love each other. Now is the time to show that love with care, mercy, and compassion. This is not a time to withdraw from our beloved community but to reach out to each other. Make a telephone call or send a text to a friend in the church. Reach out.
If you are in need of Pastoral Care, contact Kathy Strawser, Chair of the Pastoral Care Team, at kkstrawser@gmail.com.
For Members of West Shore:
What We Can Do
- We can visit you when you’re ill;
- We can sit with you or a family member through surgery or the surgery of a loved one;
- We can try to connect you with community resources that may be able to assist you;
- We can provide spiritual support, comfort and prayer;
- We can listen and be a supportive caring presence during times of crisis or distress.
For ongoing pastoral care, contact Kathy Strawser, Chair of the Pastoral Care Team: kkstrawser@gmail.com or 216-221-2830. For emergencies, contact a member of the West Shore staff during regular business hours, 9:00 am – 5:00 pm at 440-333-2255.
Confidentiality: The details of your personal situation will not be shared outside the Pastoral Care Team and Ministry Team; however, both teams are required to communicate needs, requests, responses and concerns to one another.
If you are interested in joining the Pastoral Care Team, please fill out the Team Participation Form here, and return it to Kathy Strawser.
Community Resource Guide. These resources are local, and cover a broad range of helpful topics, used and/or recommended by the West Shore’s Pastoral Care Team, their family and friends, and our congregation’s Council for Caring and Community. To download a copy, click here.
Parish Nurse
West Shore is proud to have two Parish Nurses, Martie Travis and Barb Mishic, as part of our volunteer staff and as adjunct member of the Pastoral Care Team. On Sundays, they offer blood pressure screening, answer wellness questions and aid members with understanding their medications and doctors’ advice. They can be reached through the church office 440-333-2255 or parishnurse@wsuuc.org.
Elder Support Group
The West Shore Elder Support Group meets regularly on the second Tuesday of each month. The primary purpose of the group is to maintain health and quality of life in order to remain independent and stay in our own homes. Members range in age from 60’s-90’s. Members support each other emotionally and help each other cope with problems of aging (i.e., health problems, social isolation, anxiety, finding resources). Members match up and help each other between sessions (i.e., socialize, support one another, etc.). For more information contact Paul Foster: Pfoster65@windstream.net
End of Life Resources
This list of resources was developed based on requests from West Shore members. Members of the Pastoral Care Team reviewed the literature and developed this list for your use. The resources are available online. You can go directly to the link under each document’s description. You must download a copy of the document and save it to your computer and use it that way, or print the document and use the paper document. If you download the document, do not make changes until you save the document to your computer as the changes will not be saved. The documents cover a variety of topics, and the length of the document is listed, in case you are printing one or more. They are listed by subject area below and include the document’s number of pages in case you will be printing it. The documents are from two websites: The Conversation Project and the Midwest Care Alliance.
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