In August, she told her daughter, Joanne Mullarkey, and her hospice staff at St. Barnabas House in Worthing, England, that she hoped to experience the “horsey smell” and touch a horse again once more. Joanne put out a call to the public for assistance on Facebook, and within hours, local horse owner Kerry Saunders offered to bring two ponies to St. Barnabas House for a visit.
St. Barnabas healthcare assistant Claire Wiggins, who helped arrange the visit, told PEOPLE that the special meeting speaks to the hospice’s philosophy on patient care.
“At our hospices, we ask patients ‘What matters to you today?’ In this way, we can focus on those things right at the front of their mind that day, and it can be something as simple as spending time with a loved one, getting outdoors, or listening to their favorite music,’ Wiggins told PEOPLE exclusively.
“When I asked Denise what mattered to her, she told me she just wanted to see a horse, one more time; she wanted to feel its breath on her hand. So, I spoke with her family, and we made a few calls together, put a shout out on Facebook, and the amazing Kerry stepped forward with the offer of bringing her two ponies into the hospice for a visit,” she continued.
