Would like to volunteer, but - - Page 8

DiAnne · ‎09-22-2010

@Moonchilde wrote:
@Drythe, I'd said previously in the thread that working with kitties at the shelter would be #1 - if they had such an opening and I didn't have to get up and down from the floor ;-( I'd love to.

@Moonchilde

You might be able to do that. When I checked with my local Humane Society they had openings for cat volunteers but dog volunteers were on a waiting list. I am a dog person so I passed.

Moonchilde · ‎05-23-2010

@lulu2 wrote:
Sadly it is not easy to volunteer in today's world. At one time schools and hospitals jumped at the chance to take advantage of those wanted to volunteer, but that is no longer the case.

Today volunteers need to undergo extensive background searches that can take months. When I became a volunteer at our hospital's gift shop, my background was scrutinized more than when I was hired to teach school.

We've dicussed this before, the cuddling and rocking of babies. At our local hospital, as a volunteer I could not enter the maternity floor to deliver flowers from the gift shop. I had to be buzzed in where I was met by a staff member who took the flowers from me. I was not allowed anywhere near the nursery. No volunteers ever touched the babies.

@Moonchilde
Good luck; I'm sure you'll find something rewarding to occupy your time.

I have run into this since moving away from SoCal. It's almost as if the smaller the area/town the less they need or want volunteers.

It doesn't happen everywhere of course, but it is a new "Thing" that's kind of a fly in the ointment. The Alliance on Aging people shot me down right quick for starters.

The massive new VA clinic that will be opening in a few months will need volunteers. I've thought about it only because they'll have a lot of social service type offices and general non-medical help as well as typical clinic things, and the VA would just be different for me. But otherwise - I've retired from 47 years of working in (mostly major) hospitals. I do not want to volunteer in one 😜

Life without Mexican food is no life at all

noodleann · ‎06-10-2015

I think you'd be phenomenal at helping people in care write their life histories. Everyone has a story to tell, and between nursing homes and the VA hospital, I'm sure you'd find people who'd love to be able to document their lives. I'm thinking especially of people who don't have family and whose personal histories are largely unknown to any but close friends and will die with them. Doing oral histories might be fascinating and very rewarding for you as well as them. I think you'd be tops at every aspect of it.

tansy · ‎01-02-2011

@Moonchilde wrote:
@Drythe, I'd said previously in the thread that working with kitties at the shelter would be #1 - if they had such an opening and I didn't have to get up and down from the floor ;-( I'd love to.

Maybe you could take your folding stool with you??

Moonchilde · ‎05-23-2010

@tansy wrote:
@Moonchilde wrote:
@Drythe, I'd said previously in the thread that working with kitties at the shelter would be #1 - if they had such an opening and I didn't have to get up and down from the floor ;-( I'd love to.
Maybe you could take your folding stool with you??

@tansy, it has to do with "being on cat level" more than having a place to sit. You interact with them "eye to eye", so there's a lot of sitting on the floor with the socializing - which people also do when they play with kitties and toys.

I can't kneel/put any pressure on my knees, so the normal way we get up and down is out for me ;-(

Life without Mexican food is no life at all

tansy · ‎01-02-2011

@Moonchilde wrote:
@tansy wrote:
@Moonchilde wrote:
@Drythe, I'd said previously in the thread that working with kitties at the shelter would be #1 - if they had such an opening and I didn't have to get up and down from the floor ;-( I'd love to.
Maybe you could take your folding stool with you??

@tansy, it has to do with "being on cat level" more than having a place to sit. You interact with them "eye to eye", so there's a lot of sitting on the floor with the socializing - which people also do when they play with kitties and toys.

I can't kneel/put any pressure on my knees, so the normal way we get up and down is out for me ;-(

I absolutely cannot kneel on my knee replacements. Falling scares me to death. My new 3 yo granddaughter was disappointed that I couldn't sit on the floor to play dolls with her:/

Moonchilde · ‎05-23-2010

@tansy wrote:
@Moonchilde wrote:
@tansy wrote:
@Moonchilde wrote:
@Drythe, I'd said previously in the thread that working with kitties at the shelter would be #1 - if they had such an opening and I didn't have to get up and down from the floor ;-( I'd love to.
Maybe you could take your folding stool with you??

@tansy, it has to do with "being on cat level" more than having a place to sit. You interact with them "eye to eye", so there's a lot of sitting on the floor with the socializing - which people also do when they play with kitties and toys.

I can't kneel/put any pressure on my knees, so the normal way we get up and down is out for me ;-(
I absolutely cannot kneel on my knee replacements. Falling scares me to death. My new 3 yo granddaughter was disappointed that I couldn't sit on the floor to play dolls with her:/

I have my 'original equipment', @tansy, no knee replacements. And was told by an orthopedic surgeon about three years ago that judging by x-rays I didn't need one.

But over my lifetime, especially over the last 20 years, I've fallen a few times and my knees took the brunt of those falls - right leg in particular. So I guess it's the muscles, tendons, ligaments, etc in the knee that are faulty - and surgery for that is now widely regarded in the medical community as not getting a better outcome than not having surgery, so - no point - and Medicare might not be so free to pay for it now.

Life without Mexican food is no life at all

luvmyz · ‎03-16-2010

I volunteer at a local cat rescue and while they do need people to do some of the physical things, they also love to have people come in just to sit and play and socialize with the cats and kittens! If it's something you would enjoy check with your local recue organization. There is always something for everyone to do!

DiAnne · ‎09-22-2010

The massive new VA clinic that will be opening in a few months will need volunteers. I've thought about it only because they'll have a lot of social service type offices and general non-medical help as well as typical clinic things, and the VA would just be different for me. But otherwise - I've retired from 47 years of working in (mostly major) hospitals. I do not want to volunteer in one 😜

@Moonchilde

I know exactly how you feel. I spent my working career in hospitals in Orange County and Seattle - I also do not want to volunteer in one.

tansy · ‎01-02-2011

@DiAnne wrote:

The massive new VA clinic that will be opening in a few months will need volunteers. I've thought about it only because they'll have a lot of social service type offices and general non-medical help as well as typical clinic things, and the VA would just be different for me. But otherwise - I've retired from 47 years of working in (mostly major) hospitals. I do not want to volunteer in one 😜

@Moonchilde

I know exactly how you feel. I spent my working career in hospitals in Orange County and Seattle - I also do not want to volunteer in one.