'Death positive' young workers are taking up the vocation to help the dying

Phelps giving a massage as part of her palliative care service. — STACEY WESCOTT/Chicago Tribune/TNS

AT AGE 19, Mary Phelps stood at her grandmother’s bedside. In mere minutes, she would watch the woman with whom she had shared a home and a life take her final breaths.

She held her grandmother’s legs, lightly massaging them as the seconds ticked by. “I just remembered her becoming so young in the face and relaxed,” Phelps said. “That’s when it came to me. Death can be calm and peaceful.”