Tauranga widower Jim Chissell spends fourth year volunteering for Waipuna Hospice Christmas appeal

Jim Chissell is a regular volunteer for the Waipuna Hospice's Christmas remembrance tree appeal. Photo / Mead Norton

A 90-year-old widower has just spent his fourth holiday season volunteering for hospice, helping people remember loved ones who have died.

Jim Chissell lost his wife Joy to bowel cancer in 2012 after “58 wonderful years” of marriage.

Joy spent her final years at Waipuna Hospice. In her memory, Jim regularly volunteers for the Christmas remembrance tree appeal, helping collect donations for the hospice in the community. People can also write special messages in memory of loved ones and hang them on the tree.

“I feel that I owe Waipuna a lot ... because they really looked after her.”

Waipuna Hospice relies on volunteers for its Bay of Plenty community fundraising and Jim is proud to have done one two-hour shift each Christmas season for the past four years.

He has collected donations at a Te Puna cafe and various supermarkets in the Bay of Plenty, including Brookfield New World on Tuesday.

“You’re sitting there and talking to people and if they’d like to make a donation, we ask them if they want to leave a message on the tree.

“We give them a star or something to write their message on and put it on the tree.”

Jim Chissell and Klara-Luxford Rulisek from Radius Matua volunteering for the Waipuna Hospice's Christmas remembrance tree appeal. Photo / Supplied

Sitting in an armchair in the library of a Matua rest home, Jim remembered meeting Joy for the first time when he was 19.

Jim was working as a nurse in the Army when he met Joy at a dance.

“I hopped up and walked over and asked her for a dance and spent the rest of the evening with her.”

Afterwards, he walked her home from the venue in Eden Terrace to Mt Albert. When they got to Joy’s house, Joy gave him her push bike to ride home.

He returned the bike the next day and asked her if he could see her again.

“And it all blossomed from there and I knew that night that I met her she was the girl I wanted to spend the rest of my life with.”

Jim was 22 when they got married. Originally from Auckland, the pair moved to Tauranga in 1980 and never left.

Jim spent most of his career working in supermarkets, working his way up to management positions, while Joy was a “marvellous” seamstress.

“She made a blue frock that appeared in the Vogue magazine,” Jim said.

Jim Chissell remembers his 58 wonderful years of marriage to Joy. Photo / Mead Norton

After Joy was diagnosed with bowel cancer, she moved to Waipuna Hospice.

“Boy oh boy, did they look after her. I can’t praise that place enough ... they made her comfortable, nothing was too much trouble for them.

“There were days there where I couldn’t hear my wife speaking and I’d have to excuse myself and go and sit in the lounge, and I burst into tears. And they’d come in and comfort me.”

Jim recalled the hospice moving her to a “nice sunny room” and offered to put another bed in it for Jim.

“But Joy didn’t like the idea, probably because I might have been snoring,” he said with a laugh.

Joy and Jim Chissell on their wedding day. Photo / Supplied

After Joy died, Jim said he was having a “hard time” and the hospice helped organise counselling for him.

He encouraged people to donate to Waipuna Hospice because “you never know when you’re going to have to go there”.

Jim said he will continue volunteering each year.

“I’ll do it as long as I can until I am not physically able to do it.”