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Valley Baptist Volunteers Win State Awards for Service to Hospital Patients, Community
- Updated: June 19, 2015
Hospital volunteers at Valley Baptist Medical Center in Harlingen and Brownsville have received several state-wide awards for their service to hospital patients, including for serving as “compassionate companions” for terminally-ill patients who have no family members to be by their side during their final hours of life.
The volunteers – who perform a wide variety of duties at the Valley Baptist hospitals – received the Texas Association of Healthcare Volunteers’ “Past President’s Award of Excellence” for Valley Baptist’s “No One Dies Alone Program.” The first place award was presented recently at the state-wide organization’s annual convention in Dallas.
Hospital volunteers from Valley Baptist Medical Center-Harlingen and Valley Baptist-Brownsville showing awards recently received at the Texas Association of Healthcare Volunteers’ state convention in Dallas are, from the left, Lorraine Gonzales, Volunteer Manager for Valley Baptist-Brownsville; volunteers Nancy Johns, Emma Villegas-Martinez, Virginia Restovich, Lupita Soto, Jan Webster, Barb Barbro, Pam Williams, Carmen Cuellar, and Carmen Cavazos; and Katie McCarty, Director of Volunteer Services for Valley Baptist.
Chaplain Joe Perez, who serves as Valley Baptist’s Vice President for Pastoral Services, and Katie McCarty, Volunteer Services Director for Valley Baptist, work closely with those who volunteer for the “No One Dies Alone” program, which provides the reassuring presence of a volunteer companion to dying patients who would otherwise be alone.
With the support of the Valley Baptist nursing and chaplain staff, companions are able to help provide patients with a most valuable human gift: dignity at the end of their lives,” Chaplain Perez said. “No one is born alone and, in the best of circumstances, no one dies alone. Yet, from time to time, terminally-ill patients come to our hospital who have neither family nor close friends to be with them as they near the end of life.”
“Our volunteers provide a tremendous service for Valley patients, staff and the community every day of the year, and there are many opportunities for interested residents to help through the hospital’s Volunteer Auxiliary program,” said Ms. McCarty.
“The ‘No One Dies Alone’ program is a particularly meaningful way to help a fellow human being in their time of greatest need.”
For more information on volunteer opportunities available at Valley Baptist, please contact Ms. McCarty at (956) 389-1193 or e-mail: [email protected].
