Silver Hill Volunteers Do So Much!
For decades, Silver Hill Hospital and its patients have benefited from the innumerable acts of kindness and creative contributions of volunteers from all parts of Fairfield and Westchester Counties. Volunteers seek us out from wherever they may be when they are thinking about ways to give back to the community—they come from college campuses, popular Internet sites like volunteermatch.org or other nonprofit organizations like the Good Dog Foundation or the United Way.
Many of our devoted volunteers have recovered from addiction, alcoholism or a psychiatric illness and wish to perform service through Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous or the National Alliance on Mental Illness. They share their experience, strength and hope, which inspire our patients to begin and stay on their own journeys of recovery.Together, Silver Hill volunteers create a team that numbers almost 250 people strong!
Each National Volunteer Week and every week, Silver Hill Hospital recognizes the myriad of men and women who contribute a skill or perspective that makes the hospital a better place for its patients and the staff. Volunteers with backgrounds in or aspirations to pursue a career in the mental health field support our adolescent and adult patients while working closely with our staff. Volunteers who possess special talents and hobbies lead patient enrichment groups in areas like writing, arts and craft, cooking, music, meditation, knitting and flower arranging. A very special group of gardening enthusiasts creates beautiful vases and arrangements that are placed throughout the hospital to delight patients and theirfamilies. Specially trained volunteers and their four-legged friends come twice a week for pet therapy visits. Have you ever seen a Yorkie and a Newfie promenade together? We have, here at Silver Hill!
“Volunteering at Silver Hill in the Adolescent Transitional Living Program is very rewarding,” says Frank B., a semi-retired organizational psychologist who took up drawing a few years ago and now shares his new skills with teen patients at Silver Hill. Almost every Friday evening, Frank bounds into the teen house with a broad smile and says, “Who’s ready to dive into some artwork?” He reflects, “I get a charge out of seeing the teens gain confidence in what they do. They are passionate about art and make an emotional connection to it.” There are volunteers who work front and center and then there are those who work behind the scenes to make sure our staff has what they need to deliver quality patient care every day of the week all year round. Silver Hill Hospital, a nonprofit organization, relies on these dedicated, efficient, organizational task masters too. Their time and their efforts are invaluable!
On behalf of everyone at Silver Hill, I say “Thank you!” You improve our lives and that of the patients and their families every time you visit. We hope to have a long and productive association.