Friendship Village Honors Volunteers
Friendship Village Schaumburg hosted its annual Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast on Tuesday, April 23rd for National Volunteer Appreciation Week. The event honored community members who come to Friendship Village to volunteer, in addition to Friendship Village residents who volunteer on campus as well as out in the community.
“Sympathy sees and says, 'I'm sorry.' Compassion sees and says, 'I'll help.' That's the definition of a volunteer. We have so many wonderful volunteers at Friendship Village, who give so much back to our community. Our volunteer program has grown substantially over the last year. We've been fortunate enough to grow the number of hours our volunteers have dedicated, but also grow our available volunteer opportunities,” said Jeff Rose, lifestyles production and volunteer coordinator for Friendship Village.
On-campus volunteer activities included implementation of the Friendly Visitor program, partnering with students from area schools, and working with therapy dogs.
Jeannette Magdaleno, Life Long Learning and Community Outreach Volunteer Coordinator for Friendship Village talked about service that has been done by Friendship Village residents volunteering outside of the campus. “Our residents volunteered over 3,315 hours to the outside community this past year! They help at the local schools, Alexian Brothers Medical Center, WINGS Resale Shop, Children's Home and Aid, Clearbrook, Feed My Starving Children and the Hines Veteran's Hospital,” said Jeannette. “By volunteering in intergenerational programs, they are mentoring the next generation. Our volunteers believe in and are committed to giving back to the community. They don't expect anything in return for giving their valuable time, but we hope they know how invaluable their work is to those who receive their help.”
The impressive number of volunteers and hours donated during the year were reported as follows:
• Friendship Village residents volunteered in the Schaumburg area community: 3315 hours
• Friendship Village residents volunteered on Friendship Village campus: 2715 hours
• Non-resident/community members volunteered on Friendship Village campus: 3080 hours
• Number of Friendship Village resident volunteers: 185
• Number of non-resident/community volunteers: 255
• Total number of active volunteers: 440
The number of volunteer hours totaled 9110. According to the Hands on Network, a national not-for-profit that sponsors National Volunteer Week, each hour of volunteer work is estimated to be worth $22.14. That puts a value of $201,695 on the service provided at Friendship Village and by Friendship Village residents throughout the community.
Over the past year, Friendship Village has been honored for some of its volunteer initiatives. The Aging Well: Healthy4Life seminar which involves associates and residents visiting local schools earned the prestigious LSN Community Impact Award. The lifestyles department at Friendship Village also won the School District 54 Community Partner Award.
“I want to commend all of our volunteers for taking action in your community, making sure that each day is a better day. Your actions have helped improve the community around you, and you all have made the world a better place,” concluded Jeff.