The Volunteer Transportation program is incredibly proud of volunteer driver Syd Darlington, who was recently recognized by Governor Jay Inslee at the 2015 Washington State Governor’s Awards for Volunteerism.  Syd and 38 other awardees were selected out of Washington State’s 1.82 million volunteers and honored at a ceremony at the Governor’s Mansion in Olympia.   Recipients ranged in age from 15 to 82.  Syd was humbled and inspired by the event.

Syd developed a strong ethic of service after arriving to the United States from the UK in 1981, but he became fully immersed in volunteer work after retiring in late 2007. He admits that he “doesn't like to be still for long” and enjoys keeping busy by serving his community. His volunteer résumé is quite long and includes a wide variety of roles.  In addition to driving seniors with Volunteer Transportation, Syd serves the Bellevue Police Department as a Crossroads Community Police Station attendant and general “Jack of all trades” (from record digitizing to event photography); teaches at Unity of Bellevue; and advises and judges with DECA.  Syd is clearly a people-person and reports that, like most volunteers, he understands the “warm glow” one receives from helping others.   He finds all of his volunteer work to be very rewarding and knows that it keeps his mind active and alert.

Volunteer driving is very near and dear to Syd.  When he first signed-up to drive for Volunteer Transportation back in 2008, he admits that he had no idea of how important and needed the service is for its clients.   He explains how he has learned the many layers of volunteer driving.  He says, “We are more than just drivers.   We are caregivers and companions.  We serve as social bridges for people who might not otherwise have outside contact with others.  Going to appointments is never a fun thing in the first place, and we bring light to the situation.”  In addition, Syd feels privileged to have given rides to many inspiring seniors who are great role models of aging gracefully.  He values these relationships.

Congratulations, Syd!  You remind us of what volunteering is all about.

Our volunteer drivers represent a variety of backgrounds and have a diverse array of experiences.  They come from all walks of life and span seven decades of the age spectrum.  But there’s no denying that a large number of them are retired.

This became particularly clear at a recent volunteer driver gathering in Kirkland. As each volunteer introduced himself/herself, many stated something along the lines of the following: “I became a volunteer driver because I wanted something meaningful to do that would get me out of the house and keep me busy during retirement.”  They also remarked, “I really enjoy it because the people are so grateful for my help and make me feel like I’m making a difference.”

These volunteers are on to something.  As noted in this article in USA Today,

"Volunteering is not only good for others, it's good for you.

Research shows that people who volunteer report lower mortality rates, lower rates of depression, fewer physical limitations and lower levels of stress than those who don't volunteer, says Wendy Spencer, CEO of the Corporation for National and Community Service, a federal agency that administers Senior Corps, AmeriCorps and other programs. ‘The health benefits are huge.’"

The story also details the significant positive impact these retirees collectively make in our communities: "More than 20 million older adults — more than a quarter of those 55 and older — contributed on average more than 3 billion hours of service in their communities per year from 2011 to 2013. The value of this service is estimated at $75 billion."

We are grateful to have so many retirees as volunteer drivers for our program.  It is an obvious win-win situation for all of us!

Of course, if you know a retiree looking for a fun and worthwhile way to make the best of their newfound freedom [or anyone else with weekday availability], send them our way!  Have them contact Hilary at (206)748-7588 or hilaryc@seniorservices.org to start their journey as a volunteer driver.  They can “pay it forward” while finding passion and purpose in their golden years.

The Group Health Transportation Assistance Program, one of our valued partners, created a video that highlights many key elements of Volunteer Transportation.   When viewing it, we are reminded of: how much volunteer drivers love their unique role, the huge difference rides to doctor’s offices make in the lives of those who need them, the important social contact that takes place during rides, and the heartfelt appreciation clients express for the service. 

We’d like to share it with you here:

Just a couple short months ago, Robert Cuffel became the newest member of our Hyde Shuttle Volunteer Driver team in Des Moines.  We were all elated to have him on board, as the program was (and still is) in great need of additional drivers.  Robert seamlessly adjusted to his new role with a wonderful can-do attitude and has already become an invaluable part of the Hyde community. 

• What made you decide to become a Hyde Shuttle volunteer driver?  As a retiree, I wanted to give back to our community.  There is a great need.
• What do you enjoy most about serving as a driver thus far? The clients are wonderful.  I feel fortunate helping out.
• What has been the most interesting part of this volunteer job? The most interesting and challenging part was to become familiar with the addresses.  I generally drive to familiar locations without taking note of the addresses.  It was somewhat humbling to view driving in this new context.
• Why do you think this is such a needed service in our community? People are very busy with the demands of their jobs, families and friends.  In my case, I wasn't aware of how the great the need is.
• Is there anything that you’ve learned or reflected about because of your role of volunteer driver that you’d like to share with us? How very fortunate I and my family are to have independence and good health to enjoy. 

Thank you to Robert for so quickly and thoughtfully jumping into the world of the Hyde Shuttles!  We hope that he continues to enjoy his service with the program for years to come, and that many others join this admirable team as well.

It’s always difficult to say good-bye to one of our precious volunteers.  Yet, when life circumstances change and prevent a person from driving for the Volunteer Transportation program any longer, we understand.   We also collect exit reports from these outgoing volunteers to gain insight into their experiences with our program.  This week’s post comes directly from these surveys.

It has been quite heartening to peruse our most recent batch of exiting volunteer feedback.  You will note that many responses to questions echo others, and they all affirm the value of our work.  In addition, they offer many kudos for our hardworking schedulers!  Here are some of the statements from our volunteers:

• Helping in a way that is really appreciated and needed.  I found the information given to me before every ride was so helpful.
• Meeting the seniors and interacting with them.  Different experiences and stories every week.  Feeling a purpose beyond myself while I was in between jobs.
• Meeting nice people and feeling the satisfaction of helping others.
• Being able to help with transportation for people who needed it and chatting with the clients.
• The knowledge that I was helping members of my community I otherwise would not have met.
• Meeting the clients and discovering mutual associations.
• I really enjoyed visiting with the clients.  They were always so nice and appreciated the rides very much.  It was interesting to hear about their lives.

• Thanks you so much for everything.   To Amy: Keep up the great work!
• I think you’re doing such an excellent job!
• Great program!  … Donald is a pleasure to work with.  Keep up all the great work you do. 
• I really enjoyed working with everyone at Volunteer Transportation and the many coordinators over time.
• Great feedback from the dispatcher, Donald.  He was always available to help in any untoward situation.  A pleasure to work with.
• Can recommend SST to anybody who wants to volunteer.  It is very rewarding and fun.
• I enjoyed the experience very much, working with the staff and clients.
• It was a pleasure working with your dedicated staff.  I miss Donald’s cheery conversations.  Thank you all so much for organizing and keeping this vital services going for our needy seniors.
• This experience with Senior Services has been so rewarding and uplifting!  We thank you all for providing such a super environment for us to help others!
• Time has passed so swiftly since my orientation with Cindy fourteen years ago.  The void was filled since retirement and provided fulfillment.  We will miss you all and your dedication to a worthwhile endeavor.
• Everyone we dealt with at Senior Services was especially kind and caring.  Just the kind of personalities who work well with our clients!
• Donald is not only a fantastic coordinator but an amazing person.  His dedication and constant understanding and patience made Senior Services a great place to volunteer for.  Thank you!
• It has been such a pleasure all these years of talking with different schedulers beginning with Mary Ann way back in the 90’s and ending now with Amy.  They have a great sense of humor and they all do such a great job.

This week's post is in honor of our over 600 incredible volunteers who drive their own vehicles and agency vans to transport isolated, frail, low-income King County elders to life-sustaining and life-enriching activities.  It is a Huffington Post article entitled "Why Volunteering Is So Good For Your Health."  Just another way that lives are improved by our programs!

Why Volunteering is So Good for Your Health
By Hilary Young

It's one of the first lessons we learn as children -- "sharing means caring." We might not understand why we have to share at first, especially when there are younger siblings involved, but as we grow into adulthood, sharing becomes an essential part of your social and career success.

So does it come as a surprise to learn that research now proves that sharing your time with others for a good cause can improve your overall happiness and mental well-being? It turns out that Baby Boomers give more total dollars to charities than any other generation. According to Forbes, Boomers are responsible for 34 percent of all charitable donations, which amounts to nearly $61.9 billion every year.

And according to the data collected by Volunteering In America, Boomers spent about 3.6 million hours volunteering for organizations or causes they are passionate about.

These generous Boomers seem to have tapped into volunteerism at an opportune time; two new studies have recently confirmed that there are significant health benefits to giving back.
UnitedHealth Group commissioned a national survey of 3,351 adults and found that the overwhelming majority of participants reported feeling mentally and physically healthier after a volunteer experience.

• 76 percent of people who volunteered in the last twelve months said that volunteering has made them feel healthier
• 94 percent of people who volunteered in the last twelve months said that volunteering improved their mood
• 78 percent of them said that volunteering lowered their stress levels
• 96 percent reported that volunteering enriched their sense of purpose in life
• 80 percent of them feel like they have control over their health
• About a quarter of them reported that their volunteer work has helped them manage a chronic illness by keeping them active and taking their minds off of their own problems
• Volunteers have better personal scores than non-volunteers on nine well-established measures of emotional wellbeing including personal independence, capacity for rich interpersonal relationships and overall satisfaction with life.
• Volunteering also improved their mood and self-esteem

For those of us who have spent time giving back to the community or helping further a cause we believe in, you might recognize many of the above findings to be correct. It doesn't seem far-fetched to think that helping others can provide you with a sense of connection, pride, and perspective. But did you know that it can also help you live longer?

Researchers at the University of Exeter Medical School in the south of England analyzed data from 40 published studies and found evidence that volunteers had a 20 percent lower risk of death than their peers who do not volunteer. The study also found that volunteers had lower levels of depression, increased life satisfaction and enhanced well-being.

Our huge file of newspaper clippings, many now yellow and faded with age, provides for a fun walk down memory lane.

Throughout the years, the Volunteer Transportation program has often been featured in the local media.  Our office has compiled a large anthology of newspaper clippings, and each article has a slightly different spin on the value of Volunteer Transportation.
Here are some of the standout headlines:

• Working as a volunteer driver has put this stroke patient on a less bumpy road
• Just when they need to see the doctor the most, senior citizens often lose their ability to get there
• Transportation is one of the top problems facing King County Seniors; there’s just not enough to go around
• Have driver, will travel
• Volunteers make time for those who need it
• A Helping Hand—at the Steering Wheel—for Seniors
• It’s a rewarding “round trip” when volunteers take seniors for a ride

Clients and volunteers of the Volunteer Transportation program never know what connections they’ll discover through their conversations.  Here is one such small world story that was shared with us by Barbara H., volunteer driver:

“Today I picked up a lady I had not given a ride to before, and she looked familiar.  I asked her if she had worked at the University of Washington (where I had worked) and she had.  Turns out, I knew her when she was the secretary to the Chairman of the Department of Pediatrics on the 3rd floor of the RR wing of Health Sciences at the same time I was secretary to the Head of the Division of Neonatology in the same department, located on the 4th floor.  She was a bit more wrinkled but otherwise by golly she was the same!  She remembered me and we reminisced and caught up on all the gossip that we were aware of, even though it had been almost 25 years since we had seen each other!  Made for a very pleasant ride for both of us!”

It’s amazing how many shared experiences, crossed paths, or commonalities can be uncovered in a short trip to the doctor’s!

We recently posed the following question to our Des Moines Hyde Shuttle volunteer drivers: What is the best thing about driving the Hyde Shuttle?   

• Alan M. –  “Driving is a great thing!  Some of the most fun is just taking a client to visit a friend or go to the waterfront for the afternoon.”
• Tom M. –  "I so enjoy interacting with the seniors and their past experiences.  They are so thankful and show much appreciation for the Senior Services being provided to them.”
• Scott E. –  “I enjoy the feeling of be able to help those who need help. I enjoy the driving and connecting with our riders.”
• Tom E. –  
• “I enjoy getting to know some of the elderly and hearing their stories of life.”
• “I feel more appreciation for the little we do to make their lives easier than I ever did in all my years of work.”
• John M. –  “It makes me feel like I am making a difference and it gives me something to do with my time.”
• Jerry M. –
• “Driving for me is an obligation of my civic duty to help others who may not be able to help themselves.”
• “I enjoy the time, but I feel a strong responsibility as an able bodied adult to volunteer as long as I can.”
• Bonnie T. -  
• “I like hearing stories the seniors share from their past."
• "I like that our riders are so polite and appreciative of our service.”

Volunteer drivers often report a long laundry list of what they have gained from serving with our program: companionship, humility, a deeper understanding of the aging process, a newfound knowledge of local medical facilities, hope, joy, and PATIENCE!  Patience is a quality that is not innate in most of us.  As Eknath Easwarn writes, “Patience can't be acquired overnight. It is just like building up a muscle.”

Volunteer driving is great “conditioning” for our patience muscles.   Our clients move slowly—sometimes painstakingly slowly.  We often have to repeat ourselves multiple times, as clients may not hear or understand what we’ve already said.  Appointments can take longer than expected.  We often feel like we’re waiting and waiting and waiting.

But, as we learn to slow things down a few notches, we transform from impatient, irritated, over-stimulated modern adults to icons of mindfulness, serenity, and fortitude.  Fulton Sheen reminds us that “patience is power.”

So, as we inch along and feel as though the world is on “pause” (or “repeat”) with the senior clients of our program, let us remember that this is not a burden.  Rather, it is a gift!  Just like successful athletes, we are training for the important challenges of life.