Home Depot of Decatur
Home Depot of Decatur has been an instrumental part of the community. They have taken on numerous projects in the city including work at Frances Nungester School. The volunteers diligently worked for many days repairing, painting and rebuilding the school’s playground, which had become an eyesore after many years of constant use. In addition, volunteers weeded and landscaped. One team member was seen crawling around for days to ensure she pulled all the weeds from the school’s property. The staff members believe they have the finest school in Decatur, both inside and out.
Unfortunately, the school obtains minimal parental support; however, Home Depot has stepped in as a resource. They met and had lunch with the students each day they served. The volunteers were examples of consistency and diligence, and they greeted the children and staff with smiles. They showed the children they cared and their school is something they, too, should care about. The PTA got involved to feed the volunteers and express gratitude for the extreme makeover from Home Depot.
The Home Depot volunteers have not only served with the Frances Nungester School, but they have built and refurbished playgrounds all over town, especially in low income areas. Northwest Decatur now boosts a Kaboom playground due to the efforts and commitments of the Home Depot team.
The schools had drives during the fall to assist the many families in Baldwin County who lost so much due to Hurricane Ivan. The schools provided two pick-up truck loads for those in need, and Home Depot donated a truck to take all the donated supplies to Baldwin County for distribution.
Helen Hauser
RSVP volunteer Helen Hauser believes that children need to be nurtured and loved. She fosters this philosophy each Monday as she interacts with the children currently living at Domestic Violence Center in Cleveland, OH where she has volunteered since 1998 and has accumulated more than 1,200 hours of service.
Life at the Center can sometimes be an environment that is chaotic and unpredictable due to the crises that the families are encountering, and yet Hauser has always been a constant, stable presence for the children. When everything else seems to be out of place and unfamiliar, “Grandma Helen,” as Hauser is affectionately known, is someone the children know they can count on each week.
Support groups for the women at the Center are critical to the healing process and because Grandma Helen watches the children in the evening; their mothers are able to participate in these groups.
Hauser observes the children when they are most comfortable—when they are playing—and is able to offer her observations to the staff. Her input often allows staff to identify areas where the children may need help or counseling. The Youth Advocacy Program at the Center has benefited from Grandma Helen’s support.
Helen received the RSVP Outstanding Quality Service Award for her dedication and excellent service in 2006.
American Red Cross-Desoto County
What struck the new Branch Manager for the American Red Cross Southwest Florida Chapter on his arrival to Arcadia, FL was that many of the volunteers that he was interviewing were former clients who lost everything due to Hurricane Charley in 2004. A lot of them said it takes their mind off their own problems to help someone else. It is almost two full years after Charley and these same volunteers are still working every day for the Red Cross—with smiles on their faces.
The most important lesson is it does not take much to be a huge benefit to someone else. Americans respond when neighbors are in need, and these volunteers from DeSoto County have responded to not only the long-term recovery in their own community. They are also on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week in the field and behind the desk. The volunteers train others in lifesaving skills, respond to disasters nationally and locally, raise funds, assist in blood drives, and educate their community in disaster preparedness.
The DeSoto County volunteers find that people believe the American Red Cross is only in the community to take blood; however, on a day to day basis they respond to fires, disasters, assist victims with food and clothes supplies as well as education.
These dedicated men and women devoted more than 6,000 hours to their community last year. Some volunteers are retirees and others are students, yet every one of them finds the time to help a child, adult, or family that is in need.
