When the directive came to work from home, the ASC nurses
were given the opportunity to take on volunteer work to round out their work
day. Once that information was relayed, they wasted no time contacting local
organizations to offer their time.
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In addition
to her normal job duties and volunteer work with Steuben County Faith in
Action, Alfred State Nurse Lynda Merring can be found making face masks for her
co-workers, family, and friends.
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Merring connected with Steuben County Faith in Action’s
Interfaith Volunteer Caregiver Program under the direction of Executive
Director Dick Russell. Her contact, Angela Jenkins, calls her to coordinate
weekly shopping trips for groceries and prescriptions as needed for individuals
unable to safely venture out. These individuals, Merring said, are primarily elderly or
people with underlying conditions that are at higher risk. In addition to these folks, Merring also
still makes time to assist some elderly relatives of friends, as well.
Another way that Merring is making a difference is by
crafting face masks to be distributed amongst Alfred State employees, family,
and friends. She has found her volunteering experiences to be very pleasant and
rewarding.
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Alfred State
Nurse Teri Toth-Fleischman loads one of several coolers filled with meals as
part of her volunteer duties with Meals on Wheels.
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As for Toth-Fleischman, she started volunteering with
Wellsville Emergency Management Services through the Wellsville Volunteer
Ambulance Corps & Rescue Squad. This is a new service the squad has
initiated in direct response to the COVID-19 crisis.
Through a partnership with Tops, Giant, and Save-A-Lot, the
service enables individuals to call in, order items, and pay over the phone.
The store then bags the items, calls the service, then Toth-Fleischman or
another volunteer picks up the groceries and delivers them to the person’s
home. This service has expanded to include Bolivar and Andover due to the high
volume of calls.
Additionally, Toth-Fleischman also volunteers with the
Office for the Aging delivering Meals on Wheels under the direction of Anita Mattison.
These are hot meals provided to the elderly and disabled in Allegany County.
In this experience, Toth-Fleischman has a specific route and
uses her own vehicle to deliver anywhere from 18-26 meals daily, driving 50-65
miles per day depending on location. Other assigned duties include grocery
delivery, bagging canned/boxed food items, and transporting clients to
treatments such as dialysis as needed.
Toth-Fleischman was even asked to conduct a brief teaching
session for the other volunteer drivers regarding mask and glove usage and
infection control in general. She is appreciative of the opportunity to give
back to those in need.
