Making music for a worthy cause

By: LINDSAY REDDING (Tue, Oct/16/2007)

The very diverse group of volunteers from Bucks County running Serenity House and Hospice Support of Doylestown just became even more diverse.

The volunteers and board members of Serenity House come from all walks of life. They are doctors, lawyers, homemakers, students, accountants, engineers and entrepreneurs.

Now a group of musicians have joined the effort, led by Kevin Mackie, guitarist and singer of the band Think of 3 and partner at East Coast Recording Co.

Mackie has recorded a CD to benefit the hospice with the help of generous artists, some local and some international. The artists who donated songs to the album include Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull), Annie Haslam (Renaissance), Asia, Pat DiNizio (The Smithereens), Robert Hazard, Kathy Sledge (Sister Sledge), Think of 3, The Luck Brothers, and Steve Pullara.

Proceeds from the CD will go to Serenity House. The organization already offers in-home hospice care, but is working to build a free-standing hospice as well.

“Our goal is to build a residential home that would be available to patients in our community who wish to have a home setting in case their home isn’t an option at this point,” said Carol Lynch, one of the board members. The finished hospice will be in Doylestown and will “resemble a traditional Bucks County home.”

In the meantime, residents of Bucks and Eastern Montgomery counties can still receive quality end-of-life care in their own homes. Serenity House held its first training course in February; it now has 12 certified hospice volunteers.

These volunteers can do anything non-medical with the patient. Their focus is on providing comfort and support to patients and their families.

“We assist with transferring patients to beds, we help with meals, baths, dispense pre-measured medications, support the family, run errands, help with house chores, provide companionship,” said Jena Huttemann, director of volunteers. “We can do a little mix of everything.”

Serenity House has been raising funds for years, but when Kevin Mackie heard about the hospice, he approached leaders with his own fundraising idea and has undertaken the effort without requiring help from them.

Mackie said that when his grandmother was put into a hospice, “I was astounded by the care that she got there. It was more like a resort than a hospital.” So when he read about Serenity House, he decided to use his recording studio to make a benefit CD for it.

Annie Haslam, a musician who lives in Doylestown, not only donated a song to the CD but also made the artwork that is featured on the cover. The painting also is available for sale online, and proceeds benefit the hospice.

“Having people out there doing private projects that would support our venture helps us so we can focus on creating the hospice while they’re focusing on raising some funds to support us,” said Lynch. “It was just completely amazing that someone worked so hard to create something that would benefit our hospice.”

The CD is available online and at Siren Records in Doylestown.