Quick! What can I take... whose husband is passing UPDATE

How about a "hand" and a "shoulder" -- a hand to do everything that needs to be done so she can sit with her husband; a shoulder to lean on.

paper products
bottled water
sub tray for anyone who is there
trash bags

Things that are needed now and after he passes when there are people in the house

This was my first thought. Easy to eat items like muffins, oranges, apples, bananas along with paper plates & napkins. Once there a shoulder to cry on and lots of hugs.

If lots of other people are around, I'd do something like load the dishwasher & run it and clean any dirty dishes in the sink. If she wants the sheets washed before they are used, get that started and hang around long enough to move them into the dryer.

I think what has been suggested are great suggestions! She'll likely have people in and around the house visiting. Paper products, snacks, etc. would be great i'd think.

If you are close enough to her, just do -- without asking. People ALWAYS feel like they're a burden when you ask to do something and they have to say "yes". Even though she needs help right now, I think that mental leap of agreeing to let others help is very difficult. So, unless it's going to cause her duress, just make her tea, clean the dishes, put things away.

When my DH was close to passing away, my house was always full of people (he was at home on hospice). I really appreciated those who brought lunchmeat and rolls, drinks, stuff like that. I simply didn't have time to run to the store to replenish things. Even if people didn't bring anything, if they were close to my family I really appreciated them coming to see us. You really need all the support you can get. That time is a blur, but I know my husband was loved by many people right up until the last minute.

A little warning, some people are not like me, they prefer to have no visitors at this time. Be a good idea to find out before going over.  You can take something but not overstay.

Breakfast food.

My FIL's hospital bed is extra long and we ended up buying him some of those dorm sheets that are twin xl or something like that. You might want to measure before making a purchase!

I try to take something that doesn't take any effort on their part. Recently I took a friend some bottled iced tea, snack food in single serving packs, fruit, and a pizza delivery gift card. When my brother died we did a lot of grazing because my stomach couldn't handle much - a lot of the casseroles and food people brought went to waste and I felt badly about that - we weren't thinking to put food in the freezer because we were very minute by minute.

So for others, I started taking things that would last and didn't take any effort. Hence the snack basket.

Given what you have said about your dad's situation, one of the most helpful things you can do in the coming days is be there with him as much as you can - which would free up his wife to be with her sister and spend time with her mother before she passes.

What a very thoughtful person you are and so kind when you have so much on your own plate.

I'm so sorry for your family's losses. 

When my grandmother was on hospice and about to die, we had a lot of "emotional vampires" hanging around. We really appreciated my grandmother's close friend who took charge of cooking and corralling those people and being our voice about them not seeing my grandmother, which was her wish. We were too preoccupied with everything else to have to deal with those people, especially since my mom's sister didn't agree with my grandmother's wishes and caused a lot of drama herself. 

These people were local and could have spent the 3 1/2 months when my grandmother was doing well and was lonely with her, but they didn't. My grandmother didn't want people to see her the way she was, and at the end wasn't even conscious. 

The idea of lookylous wandering through her bedroom and then telling everyone all the gory details was too much to bear. Having a good friend who volunteered to be the enforcer--with our blessing was a HUGE relief. She took it on herself to figure out what we needed. 

In the next couple of weeks your family will have tons of attention and help, then people will get back to their own lives. Having friends that continue to check up on the grieving family and do things for them, let them grieve and talk to you will be a great gift. It's so strange to go from all the attention to nothing at all. 

That was the worst part when my father died. Nobody would talk to me about him. Other than my husband and my MIL, I was completely alone. The peas kept me sane, but that period of my life was the worst I've ever gone through. It was much worse since my dad's death was so sudden. 

hugs and prayers for your family.