“I Won’t Be Left Behind!”

December 2024

In the late 1960’s, Christina “Tina” Sweet was a nun, living in Michigan, with a career in teaching. Then she met Ray Bendig and her life completely turned around. Ray and Tina married in 1971, and moved to Woodslee, where they raised three sons and a daughter.

Tina taught school once all her children were in full time school, while Ray worked at establishing his tool and die business, Cavalier Tool. Tina then moved on to working for the VON, where she spent 12 years. “That was her first real involvement with healthcare and palliative care,” says daughter, Carrie. “It started a lifelong commitment to what my Mom called ‘doing things that mattered.’”

“Mom and Dad both worked so hard,” says Carrie. “Eventually, Dad’s tool and die business really took off, and then my Mom was able to retire from full time work – and got even busier! She wanted to make a difference in people’s lives.”

Tina spent 40 years in her Catholic Women’s League at St. John the Evangelist Parish in Woodslee, but also started volunteering for Hospice in 1994. “She started out driving patients to appointments,” explains Carrie. “It was the perfect role for her, she was just so social – she could ride an elevator with someone and by the time they got to the main floor, they were best friends, and she had their entire life story! If there was something going on that looked exciting – she joined it!”

Tina’s love for people was evident in everything she did, and she was especially happy to volunteer at Hospice fundraising events – working the room and helping out. “She was in her element at the fundraisers,” says long-time friend and fellow volunteer, Elaine Blain. “Tina was always up for a good time, she was like another sister, we always had so many laughs!”

 “After my Dad died in 2015, my Mom made some big decisions about her life, and how she wanted to live it,” says Carrie. Tina committed to her volunteer work; she was determined that not only was she going to leave a legacy when it was her time, she was going to make the most of whatever time she had left.

“Mom wanted to see the world, and in the last seven years she travelled to Germany, Italy, Hawaii, Japan, and even spent two weeks with me in Thailand,” says Carrie. “I have such amazing memories of our travels – she even went ziplining with me through the rainforest!”

But, that trip was where Carrie started to notice that her Mom was slowing down, and struggling to catch her breath. “She never complained, and she sure never slowed down. She was damn well not going to be left behind!”

Her doctors recommended that she slow down a little, but Tina disagreed. “Mom said she wasn’t giving up anything, especially her community work, and she carried on until just about two months before she died.”

While Tina’s life was certainly the perfect example of “a life well-lived,” her passing became absolutely representative of a legacy. “She spent the last five years of her life making sure that everything was in order,” explains Carrie. “She considered that she and Dad had been so blessed in their lives, and she put all the plans in place to ensure that their blessings were shared with the organizations that they loved.” As evidence, Tina made generous Bequest Donations to her favourite charities, including one to our Hospice.

“Mom loved Dr. Seuss, and she read all the books to us when we were kids. So, we all got together and chose a quote from those books to honour her – ‘Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened,’” says Carrie. “She wanted people to be happy when they thought of her.”

This quote defined Tina’s life, and her wonderful Bequest to our Hospice defines her legacy. Thanks to her thoughtful planning, many, many of our Hospice patients and their families will benefit from the Memorable Care our Hospice team will be able to provide because of her generosity. Tina lived her life determined that she would not be left behind, but what she did leave behind is a testament to strength, dedication, and a passion for her community. We are honoured to have been part of that legacy.