My most recent visit to Best Friends reminded me of why I like going there. Every time I go I leave with a new funny story or a heartwarming moment to talk about. My most recent visit happened to be my last, but I do think I will volunteer again in the future. I don't think this will happen until after the break though.
Today when I went it was a volunteer's birthday, so everyone was celebrating. We had cake and ice cream and sang happy birthday, some of the participants also demanded for more ice cream. Their demands were not met, but that was okay. The cake was really good and it was a nice perk being there for that. We also had a Thanksgiving scavenger hunt, and Madilyne and I were asked to help one of the participants with his clues. The clue led us to the tv in the other room, but our friend quickly got tired and sat down so it was mostly Madilyne and I doing the scavenger hunt. We were fine with this because we were still having fun. Later on all of the participants wrote on a puzzle piece what they were thankful for and they put the pieces on a painting of a tree, like they were leaves. It was kind of sweet to hear all of the things they were thankful for. Some of them were specific people and others were simpler things like blue skies. I could tell that they all really liked that activity.
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| One of the CD's they listen to. I recognized this album very well. |
In the spirit of Thanksgiving and being thankful and such, I am thankful that I got to volunteer here. It taught me a lot about putting the needs of others first. I am also thankful for the people I get to work with there. I've met some pretty interesting people there, but I can tell that they are really good at heart. They like to laugh, have fun, and find joy in the most simple things. Song-time is one of my favorite activities. Most of them know every song in the songbook and they seem to really enjoy singing as a group. The other volunteers there who have been going for a long time really love what they do and are such an important part of this place. I hope that the work that I've done has left a positive impact on the people there; they have certainly left a positive impact on me.
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| The bird cage at Best Friends. Some of the participants really love spending time here. |
That's so much fun that you guys were able to celebrate a volunteer's birthday with all the residences in Best Friends! Was this a volunteer that has been around for a very long time? I can't imagine having to spend Thanksgiving without any family. Do most of the residences have family come and visit them? Or do the residences of Best Friends not live at the facility? This sounds like such a great program to get involved in! Seems like you really enjoyed your time there. What was your favorite memory of volunteering?
ReplyDeleteYes, this volunteer is a woman who has been volunteering there for many years, she loves it there. Normally when I go volunteer there is 1 or 2 family members visiting someone there, so I think most people do get to see their loved ones. But this is probably not always consistent, which is kind of sad. Some of the residents live in the assisted living facility next door and some come from other facilities. I know a few that still live at home and they have a family member take them and pick them up too. I think my favorite memory volunteering so far was when I was coloring with a person there who is in the very late stages of dementia. She never really knows where she is so she cries all the time, but I colored her a picture and she liked it so much that she stopped crying for a little while. That was a very rewarding experience for me and I was happy that I could distract her for a little while.
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