GO WISH Cards – A wonderful tool to explain what you want if you were seriously ill

Coda Alliance presents the ‘Go Wish Game’. It gives you an easy, entertaining way to think and talk about what’s important to you if you become seriously ill. The starter game comes with two packs of cards in contrasting colors and instructions for using the cards individually or in pairs.

For more information about the game, and to play on-line, visit www.gowish.org.

Reach And Teach Says:
“A woman at church came up to us and thanked us for having introduced her to Go Wish. She had given her mother a deck of Go Wish cards and had gone through the deck once with her mom. A month later, her mom had fallen into a coma, and her children were facing very difficult decisions about her care. They disagreed with each other and there was a lot of tension. One of the children had to go to the mother’s home to get something and found the sorted Go Wish card deck and detailed notes the mother had written about her top ten wishes. It was clear what their mother wanted, and the children were relieved to be able to follow her wishes, clearly documented, rather than having to argue with each other about what they each thought their mother might want.”

We feel very lucky that our paths crossed with the amazing people at the Coda Alliance. Having seen what we had done with Teaching Economics As If People Mattered, CIVIO, MicahsCall.org, Tikkun/NSP, and other online projects, the Coda Alliiance asked us if we could help create an online version of Go Wish. We feel that having your desires known and followed, especially when you can not speak for yourself, is a key social justice issue.

Go Wish helps you figure out what’s most important to you and allows you to have discussions about your wishes with people who may someday have to speak for you. If you are a caregiver, or may find yourself in that position, Go Wish is also a very good way for you to learn, ahead of time, what the person you may be caring for wishes. We’ve found the cards incredibly helpful in our own lives as we work with our own aging parents, and when we have shared them with others they have had significant impact.

We’re grateful to have the Coda Alliance as one of our 10/10 partners, helping to make the Go Wish card decks more easily available across the country.

Your Order Includes: You get 2 decks (two different colors) for $22.00 (which includes shipping within the United States – for international orders, please select “International Shipping” from the pull-down menu and we will add $10 to cover the additional postage).

Bulk Orders: Card packs may also be purchased in bulk in quantities up to 64 packs total. Use the pull-down menu to select bulk order quantities. Prices include shipping and handling.

If you’d like to order larger quantities, please call us at 1-888-PEACE-40.

Order Directly from the Coda Alliance:
You can also order decks directly from the Coda Alliance. They have special pricing for very large bulk orders.
https://www.reachandteach.com/store/index.php?l=product_detail&p=557

Have a kind and respectful day.

Free – Thinking Ahead Workbook and Videos available for those with Developmental Disabilities and other Cognitive Impairments

Good news. The California Coalition for Compassionate Care has created a workbook and set of videos for documenting the wishes of those with developmental delays. (It would also work well for those with other cognitive impairments.) You can get free copies of the workbook sent to you or you can download it directly. It is called “Thinking Ahead.”

Here is the website: http://www.coalitionccc.org/thinking-ahead.php

Thinking Ahead: My Life at the End – Enables people with developmental disabilities to advocate for themselves and stay in control of their lives through the very end.

Thinking Ahead: My Life at the End contains words, symbols and pictures that facilitate discussion with and decision-making by persons with developmental disabilities regarding their values, goals and treatment preferences at the end of life. The DVD serves as an instruction manual, containing vignettes that illustrate in simple, graphic format the purpose and use of the materials.

Thinking Ahead was made possible through a Wellness grant awarded to Alta California Regional Center by the California Department of Developmental Services and reflects a collaboration among Alta California, Golden Gate and Eastern Los Angeles Regional Centers, Board Resource Center and the Coalition for Compassionate Care of California.

* Thinking Ahead English
* Thinking Ahead Spanish
* Thinking Ahead Chinese

To order a free hard-copy of the Thinking Ahead workbook and DVD, send an email to
info@finalchoices.org.

Additional Resources

Providing Hospice Care to Residents of Intermediate Care Facilities for the Developmentally Disabled – A guide to facilitate access to hospice services by persons who live in intermediate care facilities for the developmentally disabled.

Have a kind and respectful day.