Volunteers at ElderWood’s Maplewood Campus named Volunteers of the Year by NYS organization

CHEEKTOWAGA, NY – Three volunteers at the ElderWood Maplewood Campus on Bennett Road in Cheektowaga have earned recognition from a state health care organization for their volunteer efforts.
Theresa and Phil English, volunteers at ElderWood Health Care at Maplewood, and Ruth Degener, a volunteer at ElderWood Village at Maplewood, were named Volunteers of the Year by the New York State Health Facilities Association/New York State Center for Assisted Living (NYSHFA/NYSCAL), a statewide professional association of long-term care and assisted living facilities.

Ruth Degener, of Depew, named Senior Volunteer of the Year, has been volunteering at the Cheektowaga assisted living facility for 13 years. Her thoughtfulness and consideration are boundless and are demonstrated in countless ways -- through a cheery attitude, words of encouragement, a caring gesture and enthusiastic participation in the activity of the day. In addition to her deep involvement with special events and socials, she regularly assists with outings, operates and stocks the gift shop, participates in special celebrations and runs errands to purchase special personal items for residents.

“Ruth treats every resident as an individual,” said ElderWood Village at Maplewood Administrator Paula Bowen. “In Ruth, residents truly have a lifetime friend who cares.”

Phil and Theresa English, of Cheektowaga, were named Adult Volunteers of the Year.

With a combined 12 years of service, the couple logged more than 1,800 hours of volunteer service at Maplewood in 2009. A short list of their assistance includes running the gift shop, helping with activities, accompanying residents on outings and medical appointments, cooking and baking for special events, visiting individually with residents and sitting with memory-impaired and dying residents.

“This couple literally knows every resident by name and most of their families, too,” says Johann Komurek, Maplewood’s director of volunteer services. Their dedication is boundless; they never say ‘no,’ she added. “Lifting spirits, lending a hand (four of them!) and recognizing
residents as individuals definitely make Phil and Theresa a dynamic duo.”

Earlier this year, Mr. and Mrs. English and Ms. Degener were selected as Volunteers of the Year for NYSHFA/NYSCAL’s Western New York district, along with Maplewood volunteer Sr. Mary Thomas Frys, CSSF, who was named the district Spiritual Guidance Volunteer of the Year. Their nominations were advanced to the state level, where Ms. Degener and the Englishes earned top distinctions among more than a dozen finalists in their respective categories.

They were recognized, along with other health care facilities staff and volunteers, at the organization’s annual convention, June 22.