One Family, Three Generations of Cedars-Sinai Volunteers
During National Volunteer Appreciation Week, Cedars-Sinai Puts Out the Call for More to Don the Blue Jacket
Cedars-Sinai is saluting its 3,700 volunteers this week, as part of National Volunteer Appreciation Week. Among the volunteers being celebrated are three generations of one family whose individual members have been wearing the Cedars-Sinai light blue volunteer jacket for more than 40 years.
Shirley Harkavy was first. The 96-year-old from Los Angeles, now the medical center’s oldest volunteer, joined in 1981. For the first decade or so, she was one of the volunteers who helped patients awaiting heart surgery.
“We were a very close-knit family,” said Harkavy, of her fellow volunteers. “Volunteering was more than just giving back; it was a whole community.”
Harkavy’s daughter, Marcie Rees, joined the volunteer ranks after she retired as a dental hygienist.
“I had the time and I think it was always instilled in us that you give back,” Rees said. “That’s just how we were brought up. You always give back. We raised our kids the same way.”
In fact, Rees’ son, Jordan Rees, MD, was a student volunteer at Cedars-Sinai before he went to medical school. These days, the busy pulmonologist gets a kick out of bumping into his mother and grandmother in the halls of the hospital.
“Volunteering helped inspire me to go into medicine, and here I am now,” he said. “It’s kind of full circle to be here, back at Cedars-Sinai.”
The medical center has room for volunteers of all ages, from students to older adults, said Michele Prince, director of Volunteer Services, and there are
opportunities to fit many interests. Some volunteers play piano in the lobby; others work in the gift shop or deliver flowers to patients. There are volunteers who help feed patients, and those who answer questions at information desks. Marcie Rees is part of the Barbara Cowen POOCH (Pets Offering Ongoing Care and Healing) Program in which volunteers bring their well-trained dogs to visit with patients and staff. Rees’ black Labrador, Olive, has a talent for comforting patients.
“Olive gives them unconditional love,” Rees said. “A lot of patients from all over the world and the country are here missing their own pets, and Olive will go on the bed with them and cuddle, and it helps the patient take their mind off of what they’re feeling.”
The hospital needs more volunteers, including POOCH volunteers, and shifts are typically four hours, once a week. Prince said volunteering is a good fit with newly retired people or empty-nesters, who can find a community and sense of purpose at Cedars-Sinai.
“Many say they gain more than they give as volunteers,” Prince said. “When they put on that light blue jacket, they find a sense of purpose.”
Read more on the Cedars-Sinai Blog: Volunteering at Cedars-Sinai--Always Needed, Always Valued