Volunteers find mutual benefit in helping others

northjersey.com ^ | August 23, 2007 | AMY NI PAN

[Coleus]

Sunlight trickles in from the blinds as Lucy Spyer crouches and takes Hazel McGuiness' hand. "Do you feel anything?" asks Spyer. McGuiness hesitates, then replies, "Not really." McGuiness was born and raised in Elizabeth. Today, at 93 years of age, she resides in Brighton Gardens of Mountainside, an assisted-living community in Union County. Spyer, a volunteer from Toms River, is performing reiki, a gentle "laying on of hands," purported to be calming and healing. Ten minutes later, McGuiness says, "I feel warm."

Dan Hausser, another reiki practitioner, lays his hands on McGuiness' knees. "I have to warn you, I'm not very handsome," he jokes. "It'll do the trick," McGuiness shoots right back. Both Hausser and Spyer have been volunteers at Care Alternatives Hospice in Cranford for three years. For a couple of hours each week, they visit patients who have been diagnosed with six months or less to live. Volunteers play music, give massages, knit and bring pets to visit patients. Sometimes, all that is needed is a caring presence.

About 26.7 percent of the American population 16 years and older participated in volunteer work in 2006, a slight decline from previous years, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Yet the need never diminishes. Before the volunteers leave, McGuiness tells them, "It's nice to have young people visit."

"Funny how 'young people' is relative," Hausser laughs. He is 57, Spyer 64. Contrary to common misconceptions, it isn't just retired seniors and high school students who volunteer. People between 35 and 54 are the most likely to volunteer. Many high schools require students to have a certain number of volunteer hours to graduate, yet the rate of teenage volunteers declined the most last year. The rate for females between 16 and 19 fell from 33.5 to 28.8 percent, the rate for males from 27.4 to 24.1 percent. Spyer, a breast cancer survivor, feels as if she was meant to work with the patients at Care Alternatives. Her eyes light up as she speaks about her charges.

"I help only one (person a week) but she's beautiful. I make her laugh, she makes me laugh. The feeling is beautiful. It gives life to us." "It seems like things find us," agrees Hausser. "It's the peace that we get back (and) the peace we leave behind. (My wife) enjoys the benefits of seeing me more peaceful." Nonetheless, the work can take a toll on the volunteers, especially when it's time to say goodbye. And despite the hard work, they often linger in the background.

Jim Hein, a retired carpenter, goes to the Foundation for the Handicapped in Wayne four or five days a week. He began volunteering at an animal shelter, then heard about the foundation through an acquaintance and a newspaper article. "I just don't like to sit around the house," he says. Or at least, that's how it started. The foundation, located in a woodsy area at the end of Woodridge Terrace, provides jobs for mentally and physically disabled people who might otherwise be unable to find them. They do a variety of assembly tasks, such as packaging tea or cutting up electric components.

Nowadays, Hein does anything and everything at the foundation, usually volunteering for a couple of hours in the morning. After being greeted with hugs and kisses by the "kids," as he affectionately calls the workers, he sets out to see what needs to be done. He tends to general upkeep -- planting flowers, painting fences, cleaning gutters, fixing chairs. But he doesn't volunteer just for something to do. Every little "chore" helps keep the foundation running, saves money and allows staff to concentrate on patient care. "This is so rewarding because of the people," he says. "(The workers) confide in you. You can't do enough for them."

Since the foundation is not government-subsidized, "we depend on volunteers," says Frank Brescia, the executive director. For four years, Hein has been walking through the grounds, looking for ways to keep it running smoothly. Even his grandson Alex has gotten in on the act, helping out or just hanging out and, as Hein would say, acting like "a big ham." Volunteering seems to run in the family for Ellen St. Pierre, Jeanne St. Pierre, Nancy Mustachio and Jennifer Mustachio. The four women, who range in age from 19 to 95, contribute to VITAS, a hospice care provider.

Nancy Mustachio, a Fanwood resident, spends a couple of hours each week on administrative work, planning events and visiting patients. "I sit down with them and listen to what they have to say," she says. Sometimes she brings along Rocky, her pet Pomeranian and a certified Paw Pals therapy dog. Rocky burrows snugly into Nancy's lap and looks up with large, mournful eyes. "This is him doing his therapy right now!" Nancy exclaims.

She introduced VITAS to her mother, Jeanne, and grandmother Ellen. The two women work at home, making colorful blankets for patients. Each blanket takes around 35 hours to knit and the quality shows; Ellen unfolds one of the several colorful pieces draped on a couch. "Feel how warm this is," she says proudly. In fact, their biggest difficulty is "not enough time," says Jeanne St. Pierre. "We can't do things fast enough." Coming from a family of volunteers, Jennifer, Nancy's daughter, could be expected to feel the pressure. Yet the 19-year-old college student says she gained interest in volunteering all on her own.

"I was pushed after I gained the interest," says Jennifer, who has been working with art therapy and animals since she was 10. Through her murals and photography, she has been spreading her love for art among the patients. Just before her prom, she and her date visited a senior center in their full regalia. The seniors had crowded around Jennifer, feeling the fabric of her pouffy dress while her date played the piano.

Most teenagers just gather in someone's house to have dinner before prom, says Jennifer, but visiting the seniors was something she wanted to do. In the future, she wants to help people with Down syndrome through art therapy. Her little sister Andrea, 11, has it. "You only have a little bit of time in your life to make something happen," says Jennifer. "It's strangely selfish too. It makes them feel good but it makes you feel good too."

VITAS has about 120 active volunteers in New Jersey but is always seeking new people. Ellen and Jeanne St. Pierre encourage people afraid of the commitment to volunteer from home by making crafts or writing a letter. For something a little more social, sitting down with a patient and watching TV, or getting the family to come along. Though volunteering may not exactly fit anybody's glamorous vision of life, volunteers do necessary work, most often helping people society tends to leave behind – the sick, the disabled, the elderly.

Volunteers claim that donating their time is unique in that it is non-monetary. It acknowledges value in other forms that people often take for granted, such as human interaction. After all, they say, it is easier to donate money, and buy off guilt, than to become involved with another person and share a piece of yourself. But often what patients need most is the personal touch. Volunteers say they are often surprised at how much they themselves are touched in return. In the words of Jennifer Mustachio, "Soak up as much color as you can while you're alive."