Let's Talk About It. Now!: The Guided Conversation for End-of-Life Care

Wannemacher, Maggie: - One of eleven children, Maggie Wannemacher grew up in a small Ohio town where she always had someone to share life's ups and downs. She confesses that as a junior at St. Francis University (Fort Wayne, IN), she made a decision to become a social worker without giving it much thought and had no idea what that work involved. Imagine her baptism by fire as a new grad when she took a position in substance abuse in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, in a community with a high incidence of drug addiction. Everyone needed education. Working directly with users, their families, and the community, she honed her interpersonal and communication skills to help individuals recognize and understand to what extent chemical dependency impacted their lives. Ten years later, she received her Master of Social Work with an emphasis on Research and Evaluation from the University of Michigan. In an unexpected twist, her career path veered toward technology, and she landed a position as a systems analyst in California until she returned to Ohio to care for her mother. Within a year after the deaths of her parents, Maggie was running multiple computer stores. She owned and managed her own businesses for the next twenty years. During that time, she put her skills as a social worker to good use. Being a boss was by far the most educational Social Work I've ever done. No one quite understands what it takes to manage all the personalities you hire. Then there are the customers, who take an entirely different method of management. All these experiences only added to the development of my communication repertoire for reading people and addressing difficult topics. After two decades in business, Maggie was restless and yearned for work that would feed her soul. God had a new plan for me. I entered into the chaplaincy world, which brought an opportunity to work in hospice. These combined roles and all my past experiences have given me the ability to write this book. My own losses, although painful, have provided me with a mission to turn one of the most challenging conversations we'll all face-Death and End of Life Care-into something of an honor. With that being said, I ask that you allow me to help you TALK ABOUT IT NOW!