SCOTTSBLUFF, Neb., - Lauded as ‘invaluable members of the hospital team,’ members of the Volunteers and Friends of Regional West were recently honored at the volunteers’ annual recognition brunch.

Celebrating the contribution that each volunteer brings to Regional West, four volunteers were singled out for lifetime milestone awards: Helen Wigert, 20,000 hours; Betty Sommer, 7,500 hours; Harold Sommer, 7,500 hours; and Pauline O’Keefe, 5,000 hours. In addition, 10 volunteers received awards for 1,000 hours and 41 people earned awards for 50 hours of time.

“In 2007, our volunteers contributed 42,503 hours of time and talent to Regional West,” said Linda Mai, director of volunteer services. “Each one of our volunteers brings special skills and abilities to share with the hospital’s patients and visitors. No mere words will ever convey our appreciation for the work that they do.”

The morning’s speaker was Gering resident Lillis Grassmick, an expert on the life of Georgia Arbuckle Fix. As the first woman to graduate from Omaha’s Nebraska State Medical School in the late 19th century, Dr. Fix settled in Gering and, for a time, was the only doctor within a 75-mile radius. Her lifetime of compassionate service to others is an enduring example to volunteers everywhere.

Committed volunteers have been a proud part of Regional West for over 57 years. Volunteers come from all corners of the community and represent a variety of professions, age groups and physical abilities, as well as different ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Over 400 members strong, the Volunteers and Friends of Regional West work at hospital information centers and in the surgical waiting room; deliver patient mail and flowers; shred paper; assemble patient information guides; buy for, manage and clerk in the Gift Shop; work in immunization clinics and in the cardiac rehab unit; and volunteer in the Foundation Department, Cancer Treatment Center and the Breast Health Center. Volunteers also make Pediatric Pals for children, do creative mending and sewing, make lap robes and quilts and knit and crochet booties and crib blankets for every baby born at Regional West.

According to Mai, the role of volunteers is to assist families, patients and employees. “What our volunteers provide is truly in the vein of support-they are here to support, not replace,” she said. Volunteers are bound by the same code of ethics and confidentiality as paid staff and are also required to complete annual Joint Commission tests.

If you are interested in volunteering at Regional West, contact Linda Mai at (308) 630-1271. Applicants who are at least 14 years old are welcome to apply.

Regional West Health Services, with over 1,400 employees, provides comprehensive and innovative health care services for the people and communities of western Nebraska and the neighboring states of Colorado, South Dakota and Wyoming. With over 110 active physicians, 95 percent of whom are board certified or board eligible, plus an additional 25 consulting specialists, we offer care that spans more than 40 medical specialties. Regional West Medical Center, a subsidiary of Regional West Health Services, is accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations and is one of only three Level II Trauma Centers in the state of Nebraska.