Literature Review

The Corvallis group singing by the bedsides of the dying and grievingCorvallis (OR) Gazette-Times, 12/23/23Nearing the end of a long career as an educator at Corvallis’ Garfield Elementary, Susan Breckenridge began searching for post-retirement activities that she could do with others and still be in service to her community. Around this time, a friend who played the harp for a hospice organization told her about the Threshold Choir. Breckenridge had never heard about it before, but that evening she went online to read about the group. The volunteers sing at the bedsides of the dying and grieving, to be a source of comfort. “I was like, that’s it! That’s what I’ve been looking for: something that I can be in service to others and use my singing voice,” Breckenridge said on a Zoom call. Now-retired physician David Grube said he’d first learned about the choir while attending a “compassion and choices” lecture in Portland.