As North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust celebrate the 40th year of national Volunteer’s Week, a special evening event was held this week to show appreciation for its volunteers.
The event, hosted at the University Hospital of North Tees, was a chance to thank the Trust’s 400-strong group of volunteers, for everything that they do to support staff and patients across the organisation.
This year’s ‘Thank You Dinner’ welcomed volunteers to a bucks fizz reception, where they were entertained by keen pianist and member of the catering team, Ray Adavbiele, and watched a short video presentation showcasing some of the volunteers highlights and thank you messages from staff.
Welcoming our volunteers to the evening’s event, group chair Derek Bell said: “I’m here today to say thank you to each and every one of you. You are the important people in the room today.”
“You make a huge contribution in helping to support fellow colleagues and patients and you work with such passion and dedication. You are exemplars in care and compassion and we are immensely grateful for you giving your time to volunteer.”
An evening of celebrations
The evening, held on Wednesday 5 June, welcomed volunteers representing a variety of roles across the organisation, including hospital radio volunteers, welcomers, drivers, chaplaincy and the royal voluntary service (RVS).
The evening also celebrated some of our longest serving members, with 41 volunteers reaching important milestones this year, ranging from five year to 50 year awards. Certificates and long service badges were presented by Derek and group chief executive Stacey Hunter to the volunteers who were in attendance.
Speaking at her first thank you event for the Trust, group chief executive Stacey Hunter said: “You all do such an important job, and the combined length of service and contribution to volunteering across the organisation is incredible.
“The difference you can make to our patients, from offering befriending services or being a listening ear, to offering vital support to our staff. You make a huge difference to people who are coming in to hospital and are anxious and scared and you ease stress for staff working under pressure. You are such an important part of our healthcare family.
“We are so grateful for everything you do.”
A two-course meal was provided by the catering team at NTH Solutions, and both clinical and non-clinical staff from the Trust took the opportunity to share their thanks by waiting on volunteers for the night, before a musical performance provided by Andy Jones and Chris Graham of ‘The Tainted Covers’ wrapped up the evening.
Trust head of volunteering, Paul Wharton said: “The volunteer thank you event is a highlight in our annual calendar – my team and I are massively grateful to our volunteers who are passionate and generous with their time. Our volunteers work tirelessly to help make things a little better for our patients during their appointments or hospital stay.”
Thinking about volunteering?
If you are interested and would like to find out more about volunteering at the Trust, call 01642 383933 or email: [email protected]