VNSNY Celebrates National Volunteer Week

Sending heartfelt thanks to our generous volunteers and volunteer interns!

In 1957, Martin Luther King, Jr. told an audience in Montgomery, Alabama: “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is: What are you doing for others?” This inspirational call to action speaks to the spirit of National Volunteer Week (April 17-23), as we recognize the millions of volunteers around the nation who are answering Dr. King’s question through their generosity and actions.

This week, VNSNY celebrates the 351 volunteers who supported our mission by donating their services to programs throughout the organization in 2021, providing a total of 21,570 service hours—valued at $615,608—over the past year. Our volunteers also brought in $95,229 to VNSNY through their fund-raising efforts in 2021, donated PPE worth $263,718 to the organization, and gave the equivalent of $40,280 in other gift-in-kind donations.

“Volunteers are crucial to VNSNY. Last year in particular, they showed incredible diligence, generosity, and flexibility in providing help with administrative support and fund-raising,” says Naomi Bibbins, Manager of Volunteer Services. “They made a very real difference during very challenging times.”

“Because of the vulnerable population we serve, our hospice volunteers haven’t done any in-person visits since 2020, but their approach is still very much about connection and finding creative ways to do this very important work remotely,” adds Kimberlyn Kinlock, Volunteer Manager, Hospice. “Every volunteer comes to us with unique talents and skills, as well as generosity and the desire to be helpful. So together we shape their volunteer role to their abilities, and match them with clients accordingly. For example, do you sing? Great—let’s find a way for your talent to benefit a patient or caregiver during this pandemic.”

Here are some of the more than three hundred individuals who helped make a difference by donating their time and talents across VNSNY in 2021.

Dolores Perin, Hospice Volunteer

“I sometimes think that the volunteers get more out of it than the patients, and everybody I know who’s done it agrees. Honestly, it is such a privilege. Anybody who has the opportunity to volunteer will reap the rewards.”

As a VNSNY volunteer since 2016, Dolores used to spend every Sunday visiting hospice patients—sometimes at home, but mostly at hospice residences like NYC’s Shirley Goodman and Himan Brown Hospice Residence. “I’d visit with whomever needed a visit. Sometimes we would sit and chat. For patients who were no longer communicative, I would just sit and be with them—what’s called a compassionate presence,” she says. “Years ago, I had a friend who was in hospice and I was very taken with the care she got, which is what drew me to hospice volunteering in the first place. Hospice workers are amazing—matter-of-fact and compassionate. They were a big part of the draw for me. Sometimes I’d just go and help them out with whatever task was needed, like running upstairs to get supplies.”

Until in-person visits return, Dolores is making “listening calls” to caregivers of hospice patients. “To be honest, I didn’t really want to do it at first. I’m not an extrovert and I’m not good at chitchat, but I have been pleasantly surprised. It’s really just about listening, being there for them, and giving a little positive feedback. Being a caregiver is not easy. Even a friendly one-minute call can make a difference.”

Douae Habbaoui, Volunteer Intern, Business Development

“The best part was the support and guidance I received from the whole team. I had excellent training.”

Douae, a Health Services Administration major at Lehman College, chose to intern at VNSNY’s Business Development department last summer. “Because I’d just had my baby, I was hoping to get an internship that I could do from home, and VNSNY offered that opportunity,” she says. “I gained a lot of valuable hands-on experience and professional exposure, and I was trained in vital skills like Homecare Homebase and face-to-face encounters. The team was really patient and thorough, and made sure that we all understood how to do everything correctly. There was always someone available to answer the questions I had, and I was never hesitant to ask them. It was a great way to transition from school to a work setting.”

In fact, that work setting is VNSNY! Upon graduation, Douae got a job as a customer service representative in Business Development—a different role in the same department. “I want to say thank you to VNSNY, a wonderful organization that made me feel like a welcome and valued part of a great team and community,” she says.

Valerie Salwen, Hospice Volunteer 

“When you feel you have the least amount to give, when you dig deep and put yourself out there to do it, you actually feel reenergized and reinvigorated. It gives you a feeling of renewed purpose.”

The music director of the Threshold Choir of New York (TCNYC), Valerie joined VNSNY as a hospice volunteer in 2018, singing at patient bedsides and performing at memorial services, pre-pandemic. Today, she sings at song baths for VNSNY staff and volunteers, makes supportive and musical calls to clients and caregivers, offering tunes, compassion and a listening ear. With TCNYC, she teaches the songs that other TCNYC singers and she will offer when bedside sings can once again be resumed, and helps to plan and participates in programs of commemorative and community sings.

Valerie also connects with a few VNSNY clients as a friendly visitor. She sang to one dementia client whose daughter knew she would love the soothing Threshold repertoire, bringing immense joy and comfort at the end of that patient’s life. Valerie also makes regular calls to an elderly ex-bassoon player who’s the caregiver for his wife (another hospice patient with dementia). Given their shared passion for music, it was easy for Valerie to bond with him, paving the way for discussions about other issues he chooses to raise.

Dana Graham, Volunteer Intern, Gender Affirmation Program

“My internship taught me so much that will help me go forward in my career growth and development. It also raised my awareness, and made me question things rather than make assumptions.”

When Dana was a Lehman College senior seeking an internship (a graduation requirement), she landed on a position with VNSNY’s Gender Affirmation Program. “I was familiar with the Gender Affirmation Program in general, but not familiar with the various topics,” she says. Dana adds that she values the insights and knowledge she’s gained—and which continue to have an important influence on her, both personally and professionally. “Tasks I was assigned included researching local and international murder rates of trans individuals, as well as collecting data about homelessness and shelter presence among the LGBTQ+ community,” Dana says. “I never knew that there was such a high representation in that population, and it gave me an important new perspective. I know friends, loved ones, and people within my community who are LGBTQ+, but I learned a whole different side about the issues the community faces that I didn’t know before.”

Dana’s experience also informs her current position as a support specialist for the psychiatric department of a Westchester hospital. “We get patients coming in who are trans, have complex medical issues and conditions, and/or are homeless, and I tend to ask more questions: Are they homeless because of trauma? Because they have no help or family? I consider all of the circumstances they might be facing. I’ve begun to think on a much deeper level.”

Cassidy Clark, Volunteer, Bronx Mobile Crisis Team

“VNSNY is a fostering, welcoming space that really made it possible for me, as a student, to learn how to navigate the real world. I am very grateful for the experiences that I had—and continue to have—here.”

“I have known for a very long time that I wanted to go into the helping profession,” says Cassidy. “I had some very transformative experiences growing up that really showed me how important social work is. It’s not just a career but a mission for me. I knew that, as a social worker, I could work with individuals and communities while also influencing policy change.”

Cassidy, who is on the cusp of graduating from Simmons University in Boston with a bachelor’s degree in social work,credits her VNSNY volunteer work with giving her critical insights into the field. “Prior to my volunteering, I had no crisis intervention experience, working with individuals who are experiencing severe mental illness. I learned a lot about the diagnostic criteria for certain mental health issues, how mobile crisis works, and how an agency and a team can go about supporting community members who are in need. VNSNY helped me work on my teamwork skills, with an emphasis on connecting not only with our clients but with the many organizations, departments, and colleagues who collaborate in this work. There are lots of moving parts, and integration is key.”

Nicolle Obregon, Volunteer Intern, ESPRIT Medical Care at Home

“As an intern, I believe I was able to learn a lot more than I would have in a paid position. In my current job, I apply the skills I learned during my VNSNY internship every day.”

Working towards a bachelor’s degree in Health Services Administration with a minor in psychology at Lehman College, Nicolle obtained an internship as an executive assistant for ESPRIT Medical Care at Home, a medical practice affiliated with VNSNY. “I learned a lot—both about the administrative side of healthcare, including credentialing, administrative reports, and managing licensing and certifications—and about the business as a whole,” she says.

Nicolle credits her internship experience with solidifying her career goals. Upon her recent graduation, she began her first job as an administrative medical assistant at CitiMed. “Before my internship, I wasn’t quite sure that this was a career I wanted to pursue, but over the course of it that changed. Everybody was so patient with me. I learned a lot, and I got to engage in a lot of interesting activities and meetings. My VNSNY internship motivated me to pursue my career and to go on to pursue my master’s degree.”