As part of our annual celebration of volunteers, the Vancouver Volunteer Resources Department recognizes exceptional student volunteers. Competing for one of four coveted awards — worth $500 each — 30 applicants submitted a personal essay on their volunteer experiences and insights. The selection committee chose the following deserving students as recipients of the 2017 Student Volunteer Awards:

Lindsay Richter

Lindsay has contributed more than 300 hours as a volunteer at UBC Hospital (UBCH) and with the CUDDLE Program in the community. She is a Master of Science student at UBC in Reproductive Developmental Sciences and plans on becoming a neonatologist. The CUDDLE Program is one that many are unfamiliar with. “My role involves engaging with the mom in stories of motherhood and validating her efforts,” Lindsay explains. “During the visit, the mom also gets the rare chance to nap or shower while I spend quality time with the baby.”

Elaine Chang

Elaine has contributed almost 200 hours supporting the needle exchange program. She is a Science undergrad at UBC, studying Pharmacy. She plans to become a psychiatrist. What she learned as a volunteer reinforced her commitment to that goal: “My experience as a needle exchange assistant has played a significant role in inspiring me to pursue a career in this field.”

Hong Lu

Hong has contributed more than 400 hours at the VGH Gift Shop, supporting recreational programs, playing piano and visiting with residents at UBCH, and supporting immunization clinics. He is registered in the UBC Neurosciences Master Program and plans to complete a PhD and become a researcher. Hong describes an experience working with a resident who was recovering from a stroke: “We started practicing with the speech program on his iPad, and after he became proficient with that, I began teaching him how to write with his left hand, learning a few alphabet letters at a time. After our first session learning the alphabet, he became very emotional. I could feel how much he appreciated me being there to support and encourage him.”

Alice Lau

Alice has contributed more than 450 hours supporting the work of physiotherapists in the Extended Care Unit at UBCH.  She is a student of Experimental Medicine and acknowledges that when she started volunteering, it was just to get the hours she needed to qualify for medical school, but … “starting around 2009, I knew for sure I was going to graduate school to pursue a PhD, and that having volunteering hours would not directly benefit my application into anything. Yet I continued volunteering because I truly understood the meaning of volunteering – it is to help others and give back to the community.”

Congratulations and thank you

These four student volunteers have already made outstanding contributions, and they promise to make an even bigger impact on health care in the future. By recognizing them, Volunteer Resources also recognizes all of Vancouver’s 1,300 active volunteers who give so generously and who share our common commitment to our patients, residents and clients.

During this National Volunteer Week, all our volunteers deserve all our our thanks.

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