NEW STAMP COMMEMORATES HOSPICE CARE

The U.S. Postal Service issued its newest commemorative, first-class stamp Tuesday.

More than 100 million of the Hospice Care stamps will be issued, and are now on sale at every post office in the nation.

The stamp is being issued in recognition of the 3,000 hospice groups, 25,000 professionals and more than 100,000 volunteers who work with hospice programs.

The stamp design features a butterfly flying over a home, and is meant to symbolize life's journey to its final stage.

The stamps were unveiled Tuesday at a Florida hospice during a special dedication event, co-hosted by the National Hospice Organization.

"We are commemorating the event in the immediate Southeast Missouri area with usage of the new stamp to kick off our annual "Spring For Life" appeal," said Helen Sander, a registered nurse and professional communication liaison for Visiting Nurses Association of Southeast Missouri.

Hospice volunteers send out letters each year asking for help in providing care. Hospice professionals and volunteers try to help people who are dying to end life in the comfort of their own chosen surroundings with friends and family close by.

"Those of us involved with hospice accept death as a natural part of life, neither seeking to hasten or prolong the dying process," said Sander. "In short, we help terminally ill patients live their final days in dignity, and without the fear of dying in pain and alone."

This stamp, said Sander, is "truly a unique and special form of recognition. We're grateful to the United States Post Office for its generosity in dedicating talent and resource to salute those associated with hospice movement."

The postal service receives more than 40,000 suggestions a year for special edition stamps, said U.S. Postmaster General William J. Henderson. It selects about 30.