As you receive so shall you give...
A CHARITY shop volunteer is urging others to give up their time to help others after being inspired by the widow who founded a hospice.
Ann Wilson, a retired project manager for Electrolux, has volunteered at the Butterwick Hospice’s Crook shop on Hope Street since October.
Ann said she decided to give something back after her husband Peter received life-saving treatment five years ago.
She said she was also inspired by the story of Mary Butterwick, who sold her home after her husband’s death to set up the first Butterwick Hospice.
Ann from Crook said: “My husband was on life-support for 22 days and I wanted to pay that back. He was treated at Middlesbrough though so I thought I’d do something closer to home.
“I heard about Mary Butterwick and she inspired me.
Because she didn’t get help when her husband was ill she decided to help to others. Her selflessness was fantastic.”
Ann spends four hours a week in the shop and even persuaded her neighbour to join.
She said: “My neighbour had a mini-stroke and lost her confidence so I told her to come with me.
“It’s great because we have a few hours of girly chat while we work and it gets me out from under my husband’s feet.
“The atmosphere is very pleasant and they do all they can to accommodate you.
Manager Sharon said it’s not how many hours you can do that’s important but that you’re willing to do any at all.
“I would urge people to give it a try and they’ll see what you can get out of it. You’re not only helping the hospice but it also gives you something to do and you get some great skills and make some wonderful friends.”
Ann also said she was amazed by how generous people are when they donate clothes and goods to be sold in the shop.
Judith Hutchings, volunteer coordinator for the Butterwick based on Woodhouse Lane in Bishop Auckland, said: “Volunteers are tremendously vital, we couldn’t do what we do without them.
“In Bishop Auckland and Crook areas we have 210 volunteers who are utterly valuable. When people come to the hospice they are always surprised.
It’s not as clinical as people fear and everyone says how homely it is. That atmosphere is produced by our volunteers who are such a rich and diverse mixture of people.
“People have different reasons for volunteering. We’ve had quite a few younger people who come to get skills such as communication, teamwork and being personable which they then use to help them get jobs or into university.
“The majority of volunteers want to give something back, either because they’ve been through illness themselves or know someone who has.
“We have a lot of retired people and it gives them something to do and they always talk about how they are being fulfilled.”
Volunteers perform a vast array of duties from driving, patient care, entertaining patients and manning the reception to working in the shops.
Sharon Troy, manager of the Butterwick’s Crook store said she had six volunteers and is always eager for more.
She said: “The volunteers are the lifeblood, without them we couldn’t do it.
“At the shops we raise vital funds to pay for the hospice.
In the shop volunteers of everything, they man the till, sort objects, steam, tag and rotate the stock. We have fun, we’re like a family and you meet such lovely people. This is one of the few shops where customers can come in and the staff have time to chat.”
To volunteer, contact Judith on 01388 603003 or email judtihhutchings@butterwick.org.uk