Sr Dora Medina

There's a saying "If you want to be happy for one day, win the lottery. But if you want to be happy every day, volunteer to help others so they can also be happy." By volunteering as a patient visitor at Saint Marys Hospital and as a retired nurse and a foreign missionary nurse in Central and South America, my love and desire to help the ill continues to be fulfilled. Volunteering at Saint Marys has helped me to learn and appreciate other cultures, given that the patient population is from all over the world.

Everyday is a special day as a volunteer. But this day I'll never forget. As I entered the patient's room, I heard a bang in the bathroom. I tried to open his door, but he had fallen against the closed door. I called for help, he was resuscitated, taken immediately to the operating room and his life was saved.

Many of the patients one visits as a volunteer become very special. But, a mother from out of the country was here with her very critical baby. Because I spoke her language, I visited her daily. After awhile the baby died and I was called to give her support, but she in turn tried to comfort me by giving the cushion heart pillow that the baby had received while recuperating. She said, "I want to keep this and please pray and don't forget me and our little baby."