Stuber has 20 years of volunteering behind her
Andrea Klassen Medicine Hat News
It’s the stories that keep Jacquie Stuber coming back.
The 52 year-old mother of two has a long history of volunteering. As a keyboardist for local band Southern Ridge she’s spent about two decades providing free entertainment to local seniors centres.
At the All Nations Optimist Club, she fundraises for a number of youth-related causes, such as juvenile cancer research. She also coordinates events for Southwest Car Wash Bowling League, an all-women’s club she belongs to.
But her real passion, she says, is Medicine Hat’s Volunteer Resource and Community Information Centre, where she says she’d volunteer “24-7” if she could.
“You meet new people all the time,” she explains. “It's fantastic. You wouldn't believe all the different people we have in the city, and the needs of our city."
The centre connects volunteers with worthy causes and also
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Age no handicap for volunteer Carlson
Andrea Klassen Medicine Hat News
As a chef in Calgary, Roy Carlson didn’t have much time to volunteer, especially when his job had him working at 3 a.m.
But when his wife passed away 10 years ago, Carlson - now retired and living in Medicine Hat - found himself looking for something to do with his time. The search led him to Medicine Hat’s Volunteer Information and Community Resource Centre, and he’s been there ever since.
“I went over and asked them if they had anything for me to do,” he remembers. “So they gave me a job answering phones. I started one day a week, then I started two days a week."
NEWS PHOTO IAN SORENSEN Roy Carlson is an active volunteer at Medicine Hat’s Volunteer Information and Community Resource Centre. At 83-years- young, Carlson spends two-and-a-half days a week volunteering at the Centre where he offers information on topics such as income tax preparation and accessing charitable services like the food bank.
helps those in need access services and support they may not otherwise be aware of.
Since she began volunteering there two years ago, Stuber’s seen her share of families and individuals in need, from people without food who’ve missed the weekly intake at the local food bank to those struggling with homelessness. She says the difficulties people in Medicine Hat face every day keep her volunteering as much as she can.
"Some of them are really in need. Sometimes, because of the stories, you want to reach into your pocket and give them a hand," she says. "It opens your eyes.”
Stuber is the centre’s volunteer manager, responsible for keeping other volunteers organized and ready to help. But she also chips in with the centre’s day-to-day activities, including helping economically disadvantaged citizens with their taxes.
“My thing is giving back,” she says. “You've got to give back. If you've got an hour, give an hour. You're so rewarded.”
NEWS PHOTO IAN SORENSEN Medicine Hat's Jacquie Stuber says her real passion is the local Volunteer Resource and Community Information Centre, where she says she’d volunteer “24-7” if she could.
These days Carlson, now 83 years-old, answers phones at the centre two half-days a week and offers information on topics such as income tax preparation and accessing charitable services like the food bank.
He’s also a fixture at the city’s Canada Day information booth, and has helped run information tables and 50-50 draws at the Stampede and other community events.
"I just keep going,” Carlson says, when asked what keeps him volunteering. “It gets me a day out, keeps me busy.
“The people I work with are very nice. And you meet a lot of people coming in. You get to know them and everything else, so it's pretty interesting."
A former resident of Calgary, Carlson says he finds it much easier to get out and volunteer in a community the size of Medicine Hat.
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"It's easier here,” he explains. “Smaller places, you get to know more people. That's how I found out about the volunteer centre here. In Calgary I wouldn't have known there was one."
53615900•03/30/10
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