Our Stories

Patients & Families: Salvatore Deliteris

Salvatore Deliteris

“My father was everything to me. In May 2020, at the height of the pandemic, he was at a Manhattan hospital all alone. Calvary Hospice kept him safe and out of pain. Dad got the tender loving care he deserved at the end of his life.”

My dad Salvatore Deliteris Sr. always loved being around the family. Due to the pandemic we were not allowed to visit during his final days in a leading New York City hospital.

We were so afraid that he would die alone. But our fear and anxiety were quickly averted when we contacted Calvary Hospital’s expert home hospice team. They came to his bedside with comfort and love and never left him. The nurse filled the room with his favorite sounds of Bette Midler and the wonderful, calming scent of lavender. Dad immediately sensed that he was not alone.

My mom, Uncle Jimie and I always knew that there was no one better than Calvary to relieve the physical pain, but we never imagined how extraordinary they are in curing the pain of loneliness. Because of Calvary’s hospice, we felt that we were spiritually and emotionally alongside dad to the very end. Which, to me, was nothing less than a miracle.

Sincerely,
Salvatore Deliteris Jr.

“My brother Sal and I were very close. His joy in life was being around our family especially during the holidays with our sister Michelle. During the pandemic when we couldn’t visit Sal in the hospital, we were living a nightmare.

Our family would not let him die alone. We called in Calvary’s expert hospice team to sit at his bedside with their remarkable end-of-life care. They immediately relieved his physical pain, and our stress and Anxiety, with the comfort in knowing that there was always someone with him. I will never forget how you took care of my brother.”

Jimie Deliteris

My CalvaryCare^® Experience – Salvatore Deliteris Jr.

Salvatore Deliteris, Jr. has had a relationship with Calvary Hospital long before his father came under our care.

For the past decade, Sal has helped publicize our bereavement support groups in Brooklyn. Sal has visited Calvary’s Camp Compass®, our annual weeklong summer day camp for grieving children. He was so moved by the impact of this program, Sal and his uncle Jimie treated 50 of the children and teens who attend our bereavement support groups to a delicious barbeque dinner and Brooklyn Cyclones game. Some Calvary bereavement counselors were on hand to enjoy the fun too!

We are not like other hospitals

We understand that when a loved one is near the end of life nothing means more than being together.

CalvaryCare^® spans a wide range of care options, based on the unique needs of the patient and their families. Calvary, founded on the guiding principles of compassion, dignity and non-abandonment, cares for patients and their loved ones.

Calvary’s program of care is designed to meet and address the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of patients and their loved ones.

What is CalvaryCare^®

The Best Hospice Care in the New York Metro-Area

During his last days, only Calvary Hospital was able to relieve our son Greg’s cancer pain with peace and dignity.
No parent should ever have to bury their child. But on October 14, 2014, our son Greg, only 35, lost his battle with cancer. Courageous throughout his entire life, with a love for adventure and travel, it was heartbreaking to see him suffer. But thanks to you and your expert staff, you relieved Greg’s physical pain, and the emotional pain of our entire family, as well. For Greg’s final week, our family alternated our overnight stays, so we would always be with him. In fact, his hospital room became a sacred place for us, filled with peace and serenity. Your combination of professional expertise and compassion was remarkable. We have never seen such genuine care and concern. Believe us, we know. I’m a physical therapist, and my wife is a registered nurse. Greg lived out his final days with dignity and peace, in a place like no other. –Thank you Calvary Hospital.

Michael & Rosemary Salamone

Your care for my Susan during her final days was life-saving.
I am grateful beyond words for the care that Calvary Hospital provided my beloved wife Susan at the end of her life. Your medical attention and palliative expertise were superior. Your attentive sensitivity to our needs as a Jewish family was remarkable. And your heartfelt love which we felt from every staff member was genuine. Calvary provided Susan with more than just a place for her to die, but also a sheltered, peaceful community to leave this life as she lived it – with her dignity undiminished. As soon as Calvary started caring for Susan, you lifted that heavy burden from us and allowed us to simply be a family once again. Because of you, my soulmate died in peace, which assures me that she will rest in peace. God bless you, Calvary Hospital.

Rabbi Jeffrey J. Sirkman

There was only one place that could match my sister’s love for life during her final days: Calvary Hospital.
My sister Eileen possessed an incredible love and enthusiasm for life. With her keen sense of style, she loved fashion, shopping, traveling to Europe, and finding new and exciting restaurants. So when we realized that there was no cure for her terminal cancer, there was no better place that she spend her final days than where her quality of life would never be compromised: Calvary Hospital. The staff at Calvary – in fact, every employee who we were in contact with – relieved the pain, as well as the incredible stress that we were experiencing. Eileen was treated with the integrity, dignity, and grace that she deserved…even to her very last day. Her hair was kept properly coiffed, her nails done just right, and her nurse even applied her signature make up. Eileen said the pampering made her feel loved. The staff was extraordinary in their care, as if God had hand-picked them to work there. Eileen always believed that you should never give up on life as long as you have a breath in you. Well, Calvary Hospital celebrated her life until the very end in a way that only Calvary can. Thank you, Calvary. And God bless you.

Michael W. Conway

As a nurse for 48 years, I had never seen a hospital with such extraordinary kindness like Calvary.
I spent my entire professional life as a nurse, caring for patients at one of the world’s most prestigious hospitals. But it wasn’t until my husband Bill, who suffered with a terminal Illness, arrived at Calvary Hospital, that I witnessed such genuine kindness and care. He was at Calvary’s Dawn Greene Hospice at Mary Manning Walsh Home in Manhattan. While the Calvary staff relieved Bill’s pain, they also relieved our stress and anxiety. Plus the convenience of being in the City on the Upper East Side enabled all of our family and friends to visit his room. And imagine – ‘till all hours. This just doesn’t happen at other hospitals. Our final days with Bill were meaningful and loving. Thanks to Calvary.

Mary Lou Farrell, RN