Volunteering opportunities

Volunteers have a vital role in each of the three sectors. Most volunteers participate once a week and while most assignments are scheduled on weekdays there are volunteers on site 365 days a year! The following lists some of the main volunteer assignments. Please note that orientation and training are provided.

Recreation: Activities offer opportunities for clients to leave their rooms and socialize with others. Volunteers assist with the preparation and animation of indoor and outdoor group activities (concerts, games, outings, barbecues, discussion groups, films, etc.) They accompany clients from their rooms to the activity area, socialize with clients and serve refreshments. Some activities, such as bingo, are scheduled on a regular basis while others are organized for seasonal holidays and special occasions.

Rehabilitation: Volunteers assist physiotherapists and occupational therapists to prepare and maintain equipment and to encourage and monitor clients during individual treatment sessions and group exercise classes. This activity is a popular choice for students who are considering careers in health care.

Day Centre: The Day Centre is a prevention program whose purpose is to enable seniors to remain in their homes in the community for as long as possible.  For some clients, coming to the Day Centre is their only outing of the week.  Volunteers help staff to welcome clients as they arrive in the morning. They assist with a wide range of individual and group activities throughout the day.

Feeding Assistance: Due to physical disabilities or memory loss some of our senior clients require assistance to eat their meals. Volunteers help to feed clients and make mealtime a pleasurable social event. Volunteers can help with breakfast, lunch or supper any day of the week. Many recreation volunteers opt for a “combo pack”, helping with feeding before or after assisting with recreation activities. Assisting disabled adults to meet their basic nutritional needs while maintaining their dignity and self-respect is a challenging but very rewarding endeavour.

Pastoral Care: We provide religious services and pastoral care to clients of different religions. Volunteers assist with a wide variety of faith-based activities.

Accompaniment: Sitting alone in a crowded hospital waiting room can be a lonely, frightening experience for a frail, elderly person. Volunteers provide companionship and support when they accompany clients to medical appointments outside Richardson Hospital. Transportation by taxi or adapted bus is organized by the centre. Volunteers do not use their own cars.

Friendly Visiting:  Volunteers visit individual clients in their rooms or in our lovely garden.  Many recreation volunteers choose to visit clients whom they have met during group activities. Other volunteers visit people with special companionship needs at the request of nursing staff.  Because many residents of the nursing home speak neither English nor French, efforts are made to match volunteers with residents who speak the same language.

Library Cart: Volunteers bring a cart full of free reading material to clients’ rooms. Some clients enjoy reading books or magazines but others are not well enough to do so. In those cases, the volunteer librarians will chat and visit with the clients.

Office Work:  Most volunteers work directly with clients, however a few volunteers help with clerical tasks such as photocopying, compiling statistics, filing, collating, shredding, etc.

Special Projects: Volunteers help with special projects such as bazaars, bake sales, and Daffodil Day.