What’s it like to volunteer at Christian Health Care Center? Here’s a brief look at two of the many paths available for folks in the area who want to make good use of their time here helping others: a passel of piano players and a teen volunteer named Tabitha.
Tabitha’s story:
First, Tabitha, a high school student here in Lynden.
Tabitha has been volunteering at CHCC since late 2016. She already was familiar with our skilled nursing facility, having visited family members in our rehab therapy center and having attended Sunday church services here on occasion with her grandparents, who helped with music for the service.
She started volunteering because she was looking for a way to do consistent community service for National Honor Society, and she chose CHCC because she felt comfortable here.
“Mostly, what I do is visit with residents,” she says. “Sometimes I read to them or play a game. My favorite is just talking. I love hearing people’s stories — and occasionally being able to vent a little about my life to someone removed from the situation who can be a good listening ear and help give me some perspective.”
Volunteering at CHCC is a wonderful opportunity for high school students like her, Tabitha says.
“I have gained an army of ‘grandma’ figures in my life who listen to me, share their wisdom, and go overboard with the compliments sometimes,” Tabitha says. “I have learned about being flexible and trying to be responsive to what others want/need, and I’ve also learned to accept when there’s nothing I can do to really help someone.”
What’s next for Tabitha? Next year, she plans to attend college, studying special education or a related field. No doubt many of the skills she learned and displayed volunteering – being a good listener, responding with compassion to the needs of others, and more – will help her in her career of choice.
The piano team:
Next, let’s meet the piano team. What a wonderful group of ladies!
Everyone loves music at CHCC. Music is used for individual therapy; long-term care recipients have received benefits from the individual who comes by to play the harp (with her dog).
The crowning jewels of our music efforts, though, are probably the individuals who have volunteered their time for years to put smiles on the faces of residents (and staff) as their fingers glide deftly across the piano. Not only can music improve moods, it also helps residents relax, and it can even help dementia patients reconnect with old memories.
All told, the piano volunteers in these photos have a combined 112 years of experience volunteering here at CHCC, and that’s not even counting the additional 44 years of those not pictured. If our math is right, that makes 156 years of music, love and compassion shared here on the piano through their talented fingers and compassionate hearts.
Whether you play the piano (or any other instrument), enjoy chatting with and listening to residents, have a green thumb or special crafting skills, there is a place for you to volunteer at Christian Health Care Center. Explore those volunteering opportunities and many more here, and feel free to get in touch with our volunteer coordinator at 360-354-4434.