Kris TatumIt is with great joy that the North Georgia Hospice Nurses Association and SouthCare Cremation & Funeral Society announces Kris Tatum, from Agape Hospice, the first recipient of the Hospice Caregiver Award. The award, along with a $100 gift card, was presented to Kris by Dan Thompson of SouthCare at the annual NGHNA banquet on November 11th.

After being a stay at home mom to her eight children, Kris began her nursing career as a postpartum nurse at Tanner Medical Center where she would sometimes care for older patients as well. She knew then geriatrics was where she wanted to focus her career. Kris considers her job a privilege. She said, “Life is so much better when you are doing something for someone else”.

Kris was nominated by Wendy Coward, hospice nurse at Agape Hospice, who described her with these words…

Kris Tatum may be new to the hospice family but she is an old soul that has found her way home! Kris has been a great advocate for a patient that has no family locally and only one brother who lives more than 1,000 miles away.

Kris began working for Agape hospice on July 8, 2013 where she met Bob. Bob is one of her patients who has no family that lives locally. Bob grew up in an orphanage and has only one older brother who lives in New York. Kris admits she spoils him. On May 5th of this year, Kris threw Bob a party for his 88th birthday. With tears in his eyes, he said this was the first birthday party he had ever had.

Kris demonstrates the real essence of what Hospice is all about and we welcome her as the first distinguished recipient of the Hospice Caregiver Award.