Maurine Kelley had a smile for everyone she met Tuesday afternoon. She owed that smile to Rebecca Butts, volunteer coordinator for Comfort Care Hospice.

Armed with lotion, emery boards and nail polishes of every hue, Butts made one of her routine stops at Luverne Health and Rehab. The hospice has a few patients that regularly get a little extra TLC from the hospice. But, Butts was there to spread care to all of the nursing home’s residents. She offered them manicures.

Before painting a golden brown polish on the nails of Geraldine Johnson, Butts massaged lotion into her hands and arms.

“They love this part,” Butts said.

Johnson loved every part of her pampering afternoon.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you,” she said after her manicure. “It looks so pretty.”

Kelley was just as pleased with her bright coral polish.

Oh yes, it’s pretty. I used to do that all the time,” she said. “But, since I got older, I don’t get manicures.”

Butts said she enjoyed providing a service the residents could not always do for themselves. The bonus was the relationships she built in the six months since she started volunteering in Luverne, Greenville and Georgiana.

Butts said services like this are what hospice care for nursing home patients is all about.

“They visit our patients and provide companionship, emotional support and caregivers’ relief,” she said. “But, we also do community projects like this, bingo, penny auctions and ice cream socials.”

She enjoys the manicure sessions and often brings her daughter with her.

“It’s just a way to do something for residents and caregivers,” she said.