NEWS RELEASE
ROYAL VICTORIA REGIONAL HEALTH CENTRE
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Longtime Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre (RVH) Auxiliary members Pat Guergis, Barb Hambley, Shirley Knapp, Kathy Parliament and current Auxiliary President Janice Williams were honoured with the Hospital Auxiliaries Association of Ontario’s (HAAO) Provincial Life Membership (PLM) Award at a recent ceremony.
This is the highest honour bestowed upon hospital volunteers in Ontario.
“These volunteers work tirelessly for our health centre. Whether it’s at fundraising events like our annual Bazaar, ringing in purchases at Victoria’s Gift Shop or serving as RVH Auxiliary president, they put their heart and soul into everything they do for this health centre,” says Janice Skot, RVH president and CEO. “This award is the ultimate honour for hospital volunteers and I can think of none more committed to RVH or deserving of this honour than Pat, Barb, Shirley, Kathy and Janice.”
Volunteers awarded with this honour must be an RVH Auxiliary Life Member and must have contributed at least 10 years of service. Between all five, they have a combined total of 95 years and nearly 32,500 in volunteer hours at RVH.
All of these volunteers are renowned for taking on extra projects and responsibilities and many have been honoured with RVH Auxiliary Awards for exceptional volunteer service to the health centre.
Last year alone RVH’s ‘Blue Brigade’, as they are affectionately known, contributed more than 100,000 hours in 75 different areas of the health centre. And RVH volunteers have donated more than just their time to the health centre.
In 2004, the RVH Auxiliary kicked off the health centre’s “I Believe” fundraising campaign for the expansion, which doubled the size of the health centre, with a staggering $5 million pledge.
The Auxiliary stepped up to the plate yet again in 2012 and committed $1.5 million to the new Cardiac Care Unit and most recently made a $2 million pledge for advanced cardiac care and child and youth mental health programs.
“We have one of the largest hospital volunteer forces in the country. RVH is fortunate to have over 850 volunteers who touch lives every day in so many different ways,” says Skot. “Our volunteers are ambassadors who provide the human touch to our patients, their families and the staff at RVH. RVH is a better place because of them. I often say that we couldn’t provide the care we do without the invaluable assistance of our volunteers and Auxiliary and I mean it every time.”
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