Barb Murray is one of our volunteers of the year.
Barb began volunteering for ElderNet almost 25 years ago. She started as a driver taking participants to medical appointments and later began working at the food pantry. She says the fact that “there is food insecurity in our country is outrageous” and she loves that working at the pantry allows her to address this important need in her community.
She says she has been able to build deep relationships with the participants that she delivers groceries to and that they have all become friends to her. Barb says, “Volunteerism is a key part of my life and my faith , and it gives me meaning and real joy.”
She says this quote from Winston Churchill is the foundation of her value system: “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.”
Paul Martin is one of our volunteers of the year!
Paul has been volunteering for ElderNet since 2021. He has volunteered with many organizations over the years and is always eager to find a place where he can make a positive impact. He says one of the most meaningful things to him is how appreciative participants always are. They really need these services and they appreciate the sacrifices volunteers make to care for them.
Please consider volunteering with ElderNet. Not only do you provide a needed service to people in our community, but you get to hear fascinating stories about people from all over the world and listen to the wisdom they have learned from living rich and full lives.
Steve Mitchell is one of our volunteers of the year!
We asked him why he started volunteering with ElderNet and he said, “I was looking for volunteer opportunities and my wife suggested ElderNet. She thought it would be perfect for me because I like to drive, I like people and I like to help. It was a great suggestion!”
He shared about a number of the interesting participants he has met over the years giving rides for ElderNet and recalled a number of memorable stories. One of those is below:
During a ride with R.S. in February 2018, she told Steve that she had been born in Austria. She was around 99 years old then and Steve remembers asking her when she had left her country. She told him that she fled in the late 1930s.
Being a student of history, Steve knew that was a dangerous time to be in Austria and asked if she got out with her family or alone.
“She said she made the journey alone,” Steve recalls. “Because her parents were already in the United States and she was a teenager still in school in Austria. She found a group of other refugees whom she did not know and they traveled together. Every border they went to had already been blocked by the Nazis, so they ended up having to travel through fields and forests and off-road to make it to safety.”
Lori Scherr is one of our volunteers of the year!
Lori spent her career in the nonprofit world and now that she is retired enjoys being on the other side as a volunteer for ElderNet!
Lori has been volunteering for ElderNet since 2014 after her mother passed away. After a life of independence and being on the go, her mother found the transition to being home bound difficult and unsettling. Lori wanted to find a way to give back to people in the community who were in the same position as her mother.
Lori is a a long time friendly visitor with ElderNet and has developed a number of deep friendships with our participants. She was surprised to learn that the first participant she worked with , Marge grew up in the very same neighborhood of Philadelphia that she did. She has become practically family with participant Julio. They enjoy sharing countless cups of coffee during their weekly visits. Julio (pictured with Lori) is 100 years young and has a real gift for storytelling. Lori loves hearing all about his life from his youth in Ecuador to his travels in the merchant marines.
Lori says her time spent with participants as a friendly visitor makes her a better listener, teaches her about aging gracefully, and how to be positive even when life’s aches and pains get to you.
Jeff Warden is one of our volunteers of the year!
Jeff and his sons, Owen and Evan, have been volunteering at ElderNet for a little over two years. The Wardens have served our participants in a myriad of ways including: mowing lawns, installing smoke alarms, installing window units, helping diagnose leaky basements and many more odd jobs.
Jeff and his sons come from a wonderful lineage of volunteers. Jeff’s parents have dedicated their lives to volunteering, including his mother who is still giving back to her community in her 80s. Jeff hopes his sons will continue the family tradition, and is grateful for an opportunity like ElderNet where they can all serve together. Jeff wants to teach his sons to prioritize helping people, even in the midst of having busy work and school schedules. He says, “It’s always worth taking the time to invest in people and the reward of smiles and appreciation are hard to beat!”