Everyday People Making a Difference

In this episode of The Journey Together: Navigating Palliative Care, we shine a light on the vital role of volunteers at North West Hospice Charity. From reflexology to retail, reception to remembrance, you’ll hear heartfelt stories from the people who give their time to support patients and families. Whether you're considering volunteering or simply curious about what it entails, this episode is a moving tribute to compassion in action.

Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear advice, personal stories, guidance and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care.

“People think we’re doing something for others, but we’re getting so much in return. It’s a privilege to be there, to hear people’s stories, to be part of something that matters.”

“It’s hard to put into words. You leave feeling like you made a difference, even in a small way. It’s incredibly special. That’s why we keep coming back.”

“It might just be making a cup of tea, but it’s everything. One man said to me, ‘You reminded me I wasn’t invisible.’ That really stayed with me.”

Guests: Cathy Quinlan, Angela Read, Kevin Glancy, Kathleen McLoughlin

Host: Tara Rafter, The Navigation Coach

Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis

This podcast is produced by ⁠⁠Verver⁠⁠

by ⁠⁠⁠⁠North West Hospice Charity⁠⁠

David McGowan Explains the Process and Options

In this episode, renowned funeral director David McGowan talks honestly and compassionately about what happens after someone dies. With decades of experience, David shares what families can expect — from the first phone call to funeral arrangements, burial versus. cremation, and the healing power of ritual.

Together, they explore:

• What really happens when someone passes, at home, in hospital or hospice
• The emotional and practical decisions involved in arranging a funeral
• Cremation vs. burial: costs, options, and myths
• The spiritual connection between nature and grief
• How planning ahead can bring peace to both the living and the dying

This episode offers reassurance, practical guidance, and soul-soothing reflection — for anyone navigating loss, supporting a loved one, or preparing for the future.

Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear advice, personal stories, guidance and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care.

“It’s not just about a black suit and a black tie—it’s about honouring a life.”

“One of the things that can turn a one-hour meeting into three is when no one knows what the person would have wanted…That’s when the fighting starts. I’ve seen families fall out forever…But if the person just mentioned a few wishes… it would have saved all that.”

Guest: David McGowan

*Host: Tara Rafter, The Navigation Coach*⁠

Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis

Episode Sponsor: ⁠ McCanny & Co Solicitors

This podcast is produced by ⁠⁠Verver⁠⁠

by ⁠⁠⁠⁠North West Hospice Charity⁠⁠

What Grief Feels Like—and How to Cope

Grief is universal—but how we experience it is deeply personal. In this episode, hospice social workers Kate and Michelle share honest, compassionate insight into what grief really looks like. They speak about the wide range of emotions and physical symptoms that can follow a loss, the ways grief evolves over time, and how we can support ourselves and others through it. From navigating anniversaries to coping with isolation, this conversation reminds us that there is no right way to grieve—and no shame in needing support. Whether you're walking through grief yourself or want to understand it better, this episode offers gentle guidance and heartfelt wisdom.

Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear advice, personal stories, guidance and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care.

“Sometimes we meet people who are grieving and we only get a snapshot of how they are… they say, ‘I’m fine’—but it can be covering a multitude… And even in one family, everyone will grieve differently. Because your relationship was different. Your love was different. Your loss is your own.”

“There’s no ‘moving on’ from grief… but your life can expand around it. You learn to carry it… it becomes part of you—but it doesn’t have to stop you from living.”

Guests: Michelle O’Reilly & Kate Hawney

Host: Tara Rafter, The Navigation Coach

Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis

Episode Sponsor: ⁠ The Navigation Coach⁠

This podcast is produced by ⁠⁠Verver⁠⁠

by ⁠⁠⁠⁠North West Hospice Charity⁠⁠

Practical Legal Guidance with Jacqueline Dunne

What do you need to know about making a will, choosing an executor, or documenting your funeral wishes? In this episode, solicitor Jacqueline Dunne shares expert advice on legal planning at end of life—from enduring power of attorney to probate, and how to avoid some of the most common (and costly) mistakes. Packed with real-life stories and practical takeaways, this episode is a must-listen for anyone who wants to plan clearly and kindly for the future.

Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear advice, personal stories, guidance and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care.

“She keeps saying, ‘You know what I want to do.’ But it doesn’t matter how many times she says it while she’s alive. Once she dies, if there’s no will, there’s no record… everything gets divided equally. It doesn’t matter legally.”

“It’s peace of mind… the will gives you that. . . Nobody leaves my office after doing a will sad or depressed. They’re always smiling. Their shoulders have dropped down… there’s just that peace of mind.”

Guest: Jacqueline Dunne

Host: Tara Rafter, ⁠The Navigation Coach⁠

Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis

Episode Sponsor: ⁠⁠⁠ ⁠Neptune Financial⁠

This podcast is produced by ⁠⁠⁠Verver⁠⁠⁠

by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠North West Hospice Charity⁠⁠

Finding Hope and Strength Through Life’s Challenges

What does it really mean to be resilient — and how do we find hope in the face of grief, loss, or serious illness? We welcome Dr. Brian Pennie—a neuroscientist, resilience specialist, and author of Bonus Time. He **joins us to explore emotional awareness, personal transformation, and the power of radical acceptance. Drawing from his own lived experience and academic research, Brian offers insights and encouragement for anyone navigating difficult life transitions.

We talk about how grief affects the body and mind, what real emotional awareness looks like in crisis, how caregivers can protect their own wellbeing, and why acceptance—not resistance—is the foundation of peace.

Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear advice, personal stories, guidance and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care.

“ Imagine that you have a beautiful garden. You love your garden… but then a weed grows. A loved one gets sick, passes away. You try to fight that weed, pull it up—but it just keeps growing.

The more you resist it, the stronger it gets. So what do you do? You accept the weed is there… and still enjoy the rest of your garden.

That’s resilience. Being there for your life. Watering your other flowers.

It’s not about fixing the loss—it’s about living with it.”

Guest: Dr. Brian Pennie

*Host: Tara Rafter, The Navigation Coach*⁠

Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis

Episode Sponsor: ⁠ Verver Visual Ltd

This podcast is produced by ⁠⁠Verver⁠⁠

by ⁠⁠⁠⁠North West Hospice Charity⁠⁠

Inclusive Support Through Life’s Final Journey

Host Tara Rafter speaks with two spiritual care chaplains at North West Hospice Charity — Father John Carroll and Colette Furlong— about the deeply human role of spiritual support in palliative care. Through stories of presence, ritual, and connection, they explore how chaplaincy offers comfort and meaning to patients and families, regardless of faith. It’s a moving conversation about listening, compassion, and being alongside others in life’s most vulnerable moments.

Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear advice, personal stories, guidance and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care.

“Spiritual care isn’t always religious. It’s about meaning, connection, being heard.”

“I never assume I know what someone needs. I just show up. I say, ‘I’m here with you… wherever you are today."

“That’s the difference. Not to guide. Just to walk beside.”

“It’s not for me to have the answers. It’s to journey with them… just to be there while they find their own.”

Guests: Father John Carroll and Colette Furlong

Host: Tara Rafter, The Navigation Coach*⁠

Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis

Episode Sponsor: ⁠ McGowans Crematorium and FUneral Home

This podcast is produced by ⁠⁠Verver⁠⁠

by ⁠⁠⁠⁠North West Hospice Charity⁠⁠

Tara Rafter’s Tools and Insights for the Palliative Journey

In this special episode, our usual host Tara Rafter becomes the guest, joined by North West Hospice Charity Manager Olive McTague. Tara, an award-winning life coach and master NLP practitioner, shares practical tools, personal experiences, and emotional insights for navigating uncertainty, grief, and the palliative care journey.

With gentle humour and grounded wisdom, Tara speaks about coping with difficult diagnoses, the role of presence, the power of micro-moments, and how small rituals can help us stay connected — to ourselves and those we love. Whether you’re supporting someone, grieving, or preparing for difficult conversations, this episode offers meaningful support and compassionate guidance.

Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear advice, personal stories, guidance and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care.

“Your legacy doesn’t have to be huge. It can be in the tiniest little things. Sometimes the legacy is the sound of somebody’s laughter… the smell of someone’s aftershave. There are things that linger with us from the humans we were lucky enough to meet—that we’ll never forget.”

“People often said, ‘You’re so strong’—but I didn’t feel strong. I felt like a big helpless mess. And what I’ve learned is that strength isn’t holding it all together—it’s actually allowing yourself to fall apart… and still show up.”

Guest: Tara Rafter, The Navigation Coach

Host: Olive McTague

Episode Sponsor: ⁠Brian Pennie⁠

Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis

This podcast is produced by ⁠⁠Verver⁠⁠

by ⁠⁠⁠⁠North West Hospice Charity⁠⁠

Navigating Life’s Hardest Journey as a Family

When her husband Owen was diagnosed with cancer, Susan Atkinson found herself navigating one of life’s hardest journeys with strength and heart. In this episode, Susan shares how palliative care — and the support of North West Hospice Charity — helped her family through love, loss, and everything in between.

Discover The Journey Together, a podcast by North West Hospice Charity. Hear advice, personal stories, guidance and emotional support for patients, families, and caregivers navigating palliative care.

“I was terrified. I didn’t want to talk to anyone from the hospice because I thought that was it—that it was the end… But I wish I’d let them in sooner.

…When they came, it wasn’t scary. It wasn’t dramatic. It was calm. And helpful. And kind. They made things easier—not harder.

…If I was talking to anyone now, I’d say: talk to the hospice.

Don’t be afraid. Just reach out.

It’s not about giving up. It’s about getting help to do it well.”

“That weekend was the same, even though you knew it was really coming to the end… it was a great weekend. It was like a live wake… he was there with the lads, having the craic… and not everyone gets that opportunity.”

Guest: Susan Atkinson

Host: Tara Rafter, The Navigation Coach

Show music: #mobygratis @mobygratis

Episode Sponsor: ⁠ The Institute of Hospice and Palliative Care

This podcast is produced by ⁠⁠Verver⁠⁠

by ⁠⁠⁠⁠North West Hospice Charity⁠⁠