And because so many people will need end of life care, the nonprofit organization could use your help now.

Hospice provides medical, emotional and spiritual services for dying patients and their families in Wake and six surrounding counties. The organization serves about 220 patients at a time, providing medical care and related equipment and support for those taking care of a dying loved one.

Jim Strothman, 68, was introduced to hospice before he lost his wife, Eleanor, to cancer in November 2005.

"I didn't really have any sense of appreciation for the comfort that they bring not only to the patient but the caregivers," Strothman said.

The organization provided equipment, including a wheelchair, while a hospice nurse helped Strothman sort out the dozen pills his wife had to take.

"It enabled my wife to be at home, because that's where she wanted to be and that's where she wanted to die," he said.

This past fall, Strothman started volunteering for hospice. He wanted to give back for all that the organization did for him, he said. As a family support volunteer, his duties include keeping a patient company or staying with a patient so family members can run errands or take a break.

Family support volunteers go through a 20-hour training program and tend to be people who have lost a loved one, said Anne Arndt, director of support services for Hospice of Wake County. But those jobs are hardly the only volunteer opportunities.

Volunteers also do office work, such as data entry or filing. Licensed hairdressers or massage therapists volunteer their services. And hospice can always use people to help with fund-raising events.

The idea behind hospice took root in England in 1957 when a social worker watched a loved one die of cancer. His pain and suffering convinced her that there was a better way to treat not only the physical symptoms associated with dying but also the spiritual and emotional pain, Arndt said.

Hospice of Wake County was founded in 1979. The organization has more than 100 staff members and a stable of 200 volunteers, including people of all ages and experiences, Arndt said.