A History of Care
250 Years of American Need, Service, and Hope
For July 4th, 2026 and Ahead
Partnering with Hospice & Palliative Care Today, Composing Life Out of Loss honors this 250th anniversary of the United States by celebrating a different kind of story: the long, uneven history of how Americans have responded to suffering. We invite you to explore how across war, epidemic disease, poverty, injustice, disability, serious illness, dying, and grief, the story of our country is also a story of service—of people who nursed, advocated, reformed, comforted, and widened the circle of care.
This series of 25 decades traces a history marked by struggle and courage, by failures that demanded truth-telling and by acts of compassion that opened new possibilities for healing—not a straight-line tale of progress, nor a simple chronicle of harm. Reflect with us on how the past shapes the hospice and palliative care we provide today—and the chapters we are called to write next. ~ Text and graphics authored by Joy S. Berger, Founder & CEO of Composing Life; Editor in Chief for Hospice & Palliative Care Today
