Forty years ago, three people saw a need and today, that vision serves thousands.
In 1986, Denise and Mike Heatlie, together with Yvonne Pinker, opened the doors of what would become East Rand Palliative Care. With counselling experience through Lifeline, their focus was simple but profound: to offer emotional support to families facing serious illness.
It all began in Ampthill Avenue, Benoni, rent free for the first year. The space was modest. The team was volunteer driven. The foundation based on compassion.
It soon became clear that emotional support alone was not enough. Families also needed medical care. Nursing sisters stepped forward, offering their skills voluntarily. From the beginning, our NPO model was defined and remains unchanged today: care at home.
For four decades, patients have been supported where they feel safest, in their own homes, surrounded by those they love.
Palliative care is specialised support for people living with life threatening illnesses. It focuses on comfort, dignity, pain and symptom control, as well as emotional and social wellbeing. We support our patients and their families. Care is not reserved for someone’s final days of life. Care begins at diagnosis and we walks alongside patients and their families throughout their journey.
Today, East Rand Palliative Care provides home based nursing, symptom management, counselling, social work support and practical guidance for families navigating some of life’s most difficult moments. Care often starts earlier than many expect, helping patients live as fully and comfortably as possible.
Volunteers remain at the heart of our work. Those who support patients. Those who serve in our charity shops. Those who assist at fundraising events. Their time keeps our services sustainable. Community donations continue to become comfort, care and presence in homes across the East Rand.
As we mark forty years, we honour those who built this foundation. Our founders. The early volunteers. The nursing sisters who answered the call. The staff members who have carried the responsibility across decades.
This milestone, however, is not only a reflection on the past.
The need for palliative care in our community remains significant. As we look ahead, our commitment is clear: to strengthen our services, reach more families and continue walking beside those who need us most.
Across the East Rand, we have witnessed extraordinary courage, quiet resilience and profound love in the face of illness. Those experiences have shaped who we are.
This anniversary belongs to every family who trusted us with part of their journey. Every volunteer who gave their time. Every supporter who ensured our nurses could remain on the road.
Forty years on, our promise remains unchanged.
We care with dignity.
We serve at home.
And we stand beside our community when it matters most.
Forty years of care.
A community bound by compassion.
A future still dedicated to walking alongside you.
