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Looking At The Holidays Through The Heart Of A Volunteer

photo by Cookie Steponaitis Ferrisburgh Fire Department member and volunteer Karen Taylor shares openly about the skills and heart of a volunteer.

Tuesday December 15, 2009

By Cookie Steponaitis

    When Karen Taylor first moved to Addison County in 1986 she had been in a near fatal car crash the year before in Colchester and had been saved by the skills and caring of the paramedics and firefighters who responded to her in a time of need. She always remembered the care she received and the kindness of the people who were there. A few years later she came upon an accident in the Ferrisburgh area and the car was upside down in the ditch. Karen and other motorists stopped to help. “I didn’t know what to do. I thought to myself this has to change. I saw in the newspaper later on that a CPR class was being offered at Vergennes Area Rescue station and I immediately signed up to take it. Right after that class an Emergency Care Assistant class was offered. I decided to continue my learning and training. The class was a couple of nights a week and on weekends. It was a lot of hours, involved an incredible amount of training and had great instructors. Mike Coyle of the Ferrisburgh Volunteer Fire Department (FVFD) asked me if I was interested in joining the fire department and invited me to the meeting that week. I have been a member of the fire department since 1992, was a First Responder for eight years and am currently the secretary for both FVFD and the Addison County Firefighters Association as well. Every incident we respond to is all about helping people in their time of need as the Colchester Fire and Rescue volunteers did for me all those years ago. To me, being a volunteer is about giving back what I had received.”

     When you look at the breadth and depth of the volunteer spirit that is a part of Addison County it is makes you realize the importance of helping out. While there is something for everyone, Karen and other volunteers will remind you that time is required in all cases of volunteer work. “You have to want to do it,” Karen remarked. “You have to have the desire to keep training. When I started I knew nothing about the role of emergency services. When you join an organization it really does becomes another family who is there to help you learn. That may sound like a cliché but the incentives are still there. The youth coming in to the department today have  seen the department at work and want to carry on the traditions. You hear them talk about being involved in their community. They know and understand that the heart of a volunteer includes the desire to help and the dedication to have the skills needed when called upon.”

   This past week the volunteer spirit found a home in the gymnasium of VUHS, where science teacher Mark Powers and his Anatomy & Physiology students took on the annual project of carrying out a Red Cross blood drive. Under Mr. Power’s guidance the students completed the entire process and help run the event with calm and proficiency. Each new blood donation is added to the growing total and at the end of the day over 80 pints of blood were collected by donors both old and new. “It was quite an experience,” recalled one VUHS senior. “It was the first time for me and I saw it as a way to help out. It was that simple. The whole idea is to reach out to people in ways that really make a difference.”

    As the holiday lights decorate the trees and the snowfall signals the beginning of yet another winter season, the increased needs of the community are again calling on those who serve in so many different ways. Volunteers give both small and large gifts of time and talent bringing smiles, care and services to the communities we all call home. They come when called and leave with often only a smile for thanks. They come in the dead of night or in the midst of a storm. They share with all of us one of the most powerful gifts of humanity in any season. They care and act for the good of people, even if it places them in danger themselves. As we pause to count our blessings may each of us thank those volunteers who care and silently, patiently, and diligently carry out their tasks.

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