Table for four, please
September 20, 2004
By Cam Tait
WATERLOO, ON // Dorothy Harder, Mae Hicks, Frieda Carter, and Marg
Given sat down to dinner last Thursday night. It was their turn to have
someone bring the dinner and make them feel special. They've been doing
the same for others in their community for years, enabling people to
stay in their own homes and maintain their independence.
Dorothy, Mae, Frieda, and Marg were honoured at the 30th Volunteer Appreciation
Dinner for Meals on Wheels of Kitchener-Waterloo. And naturally, there
was tons of table conversation as the ladies shared stories about their
involvement with MOW.
For Frieda, volunteering with Meals began in 1969 in Waterloo, five
years before the group joined hands with Kitchener. It was her church,
Emmanual United, that gave Frieda the opportunity to help. She doesn't
drive anymore so she is known as a runner, taking the meals from the
car into the clients' homes. She checks on the clients and makes sure
there isn't anything suspicious in their home. In many cases, MOW volunteers
are the only people the clients see all day. Frieda shares a minute
or two with people, making sure they will remember to eat their meals.
"The clients that we deliver to today could be me in the future," Frieda
says.İ"I want to help others and hopefully in the future when I amİgoing
to need this service someone will do the sameİfor me. You learn to appreciate
your health and independence. I think it prepares us better for our
future."
Dorothy was also a member of Emmanual United back in the late 1960s
and started with MOW then too. She's still involved. Once she arrives
at MOW headquarters she makes sure the correct meals are in thermal
bags and checks to see if anything has changed in her route. Next, she
places the bags with the meals in the car and then drives with the runner
to the various clients.
"I also check the city map to make sure that I drive the shortest distance
possible," Dorothy e-mails. One hour per day is what she shares with
Meals on Wheels. "Sometimes I deliver the meals by myself and that gives
me a chance to interact with the clients. I really miss that part about
not getting to see the clients as often as I used to. Butİsome of the
other ladies in our group don't drive at all and I happen to love to
drive and still am capable of driving. You can't have the best of both
worlds."
Dorothy finds great satisfaction in making things a little easier for
people. Plus there are the friendships. "A lot of our clients don't
have family close by or any family at all. This way they have some contact
from the outside world." Dorothy thinks volunteering is a great way
to share time with others. She says volunteers should talk to their
friends and neighbours about getting involved in community projects.
A newspaper ad in 1974 caught the eye of Margaret and she was drawn
to MOW. A dear friend of hers is "very protective" and will not let
Margaret drive anymore, so she's a runner.
"If regular clients are not on our list I inquire with one of the MOW
staff about where they are and if they are okay (before I go out),"
says Margaret. She rides in a car and then runs a meal to a client.
"If you've had the same clients for awhile you get to know what is normal
for them and what isn't. I report any irregularities back to the office."
Helping people brightens her day, says Margaret. "Volunteering is a
way of life. IfİI can make a difference in just one person's life I
have done a good job. I think I get out of it just as much as my clients
do. I learn how to be patient and a better listener, and they in turn
make me feel young. I just hope that we can do it for a long time to
come."
Then there's Mae, another runner. She had a very special relationship
with her husband Sam. For 15 years, they were a team for Meals on Wheels.
After Sam passed away, her brother Bill became her partner. Like the
other women, Mae cherishes the time she shares with the people she delivers
to. "I spend a few minutes with each client just making sure that they
are all right," she says. "Meals on Wheels is very individualized with
their meals and we have to be very careful that the correct meals go
to the right client."
Perhaps Mae's greatest gift is sharing time with her brother, who has
cancer. "I learned to have a lot of patience, compassion, and empathy...not
to judge people by their exterior."
Another lesson: "Treat volunteers well. Make the volunteer fully understand
exactly what their role is and properly train them. It feels great as
a volunteer to be asked for advice; make them a part of the organization.
Share the tragedies as well as the triumphs."
Margaret says appreciation dinners really aren't necessary. "I volunteer
not for the recognition, but it gives me great personal satisfaction.
I don't need the recognition but I know the agency likes to make a big
deal about it. You just go along with it, I guess."
Do you know someone who deserves to be in the Charity Village Spotlight? Send us their name, telephone number and details about their community involvement to cam@charityvillage.com.
