One simple act of volunteering can change your life, or make a huge difference in someone else’s.
Just ask Ken Clarke.
He didn’t really know what to expect on the other side of the door; for him, it was a moment of anxiousness. But he agreed to do it, and there was no turning back.
The call indicated there was a sense of urgency in responding, so he and his wife Janice knocked on the door and quietly went inside.
Bill (not his real name), was lying beside his wife in a hospital bed. He was holding her close because she was in her final hours of life.
Bill noticed them and said he was so glad they came.
For the next 20 minutes Ken and Janice listened as Bill shared the story of their life together.
They spent a few minutes with them and offered some words of encouragement, comfort and hope. Then they left so that Bill could spend some final moments with his wife.
Stories like this get repeated every day in small and large communities, where volunteers make a profound impact on people’s lives.
Sometimes just listening to a person who needs to bend someone’s ear is huge at a time when they are feeling weak, vulnerable or afraid.
I remember my mother’s best friend (Michele) was dying of cancer. She was very sickly in her hospital bed, and I didn’t want to go because I was afraid and felt uncomfortable (as a teenage boy). However, I agreed to go because I knew how much it meant to my mother. But I didn’t know at the time how much it meant to Michele to see me before she died. The look on her face when I walked into the room . . . for that moment she forgot about her pain and her impending death, and revelled in my company, which gave her great joy.
Michele died a few days later.
As a carefree boy, I later realized the impact I had on her, and despite the sadness of the situation, it lifted me up and made me feel good.
Like Ken says, there is very little in life that brings as much satisfaction and joy than helping someone in need.
To serve as a volunteer is one of the highest callings in life, and in Oliver, volunteers are the root of the community.
When Ken and Janice left Bill that evening, their few minutes of compassion changed his world. But how could something so small end up being so big?
That’s volunteering for you.
Lyonel Doherty, editor
