Lynne Dick (left) receives her 10-year service badge from President Jen Lucey.
Volunteers remember a friend and celebrate a milestone
Dec 14, 2020The Camden Haven branch of the United Hospital Auxiliaries of NSW has held its end-of-year get-together remembering a dear friend and celebrating milestones for four others.
A 10-year service badge was presented to Lynne Dick, while June Lang and Carol Smith will receive theirs in the new year. The volunteers have given countless hours to the branch and its fundraising efforts on behalf of Camden Haven Community Health Centre, Wauchope District Memorial Hospital and Port Macquarie Base Hospital.
“Carol Smith is a former branch president, and all three have donated their time and gifted items to help the branch raise funds for medical equipment and patient comfort items,” said 2020 branch president Jen Lucey.
“Our get-together was also a chance to celebrate the 90th birthday of our dear friend and long-time volunteer Betty Chapman.
“Betty joined the branch 33 years ago and has been a wonderful support and hard worker ever since. She has organised fashion parades, worked on cake stalls, sold raffle tickets in the main street, and was an enthusiastic contributor to our annual fete.
“Betty not only gave practical support to our fundraising events but was also heavily involved in our branch committees over the years.
“She made items to sell on the soft goods table at our stalls, helped compile a recipe book, contributed to our huge Christmas fete and even convinced her husband to be Santa, arriving at Camden Haven Community Health Centre on a big fire truck back in the good old days.”
While there were plenty of reasons to smile at the end-of-year gathering, the volunteers also remembered the life, and enormously generous heart, of long-time volunteer Rachel Spurway.
“Rachel always had the biggest of smiles and the biggest of hearts. She was honoured by the Mid North Coast Local Health District in 2016 for her work knitting ‘trauma teddies’ for children admitted to Port Macquarie Base Hospital,” Mrs Lucey said.
“At the time, she had just finished her 1000th trauma teddy, each one as individual as the youngsters they were destined to comfort in hospital.”
The 92-year-old volunteer joined the Auxiliary in 2004 and sadly passed away in June this year.