Idaho ministry works to ensure that 'no one shall die alone'

Published: 2004-06-14

COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho (CNS) -- In August 2002 at the request of Father Roger LaChance, Chuck and Monica Finan asked four other volunteers from St. Pius X Catholic Church in Coeur d'Alene to spend time sitting with a man who was dying of cancer. "Ben, a man none of us knew, was alone in the hospital with only his wife able to be present during part of the day," said Chuck Finan, a deacon candidate for the Diocese of Boise. "Each of us spent part of our day and night visiting, praying and talking with Ben," he said. "Our only purpose was to hold his hand and let him know someone cared. We were there to help him on his journey to the Lord." The ministry in support for the dying started with a core group of 17 volunteers from various faiths in the Coeur d'Alene area. Called No One Shall Die Alone, it was designed to be ecumenical in nature because among the dying are people who belong to churches as well as those who are unchurched, according to Finan. In the first 11 months of the ministry's existence, volunteers have sat, shared, prayed and held hands for more than 600 hours with nine individuals as they completed their journey on earth.

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