Healthy Living Newsletter
Mercy Hospital Names Volunteer of the Year
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| Julia Erb of Kimball Township was named the Mercy Hospital Volunteer of the Year at a volunteer recognition and celebration dinner held in April. |
Julia Erb of Kimball Township warmly explains her dedication to providing Spiritual Care Ministry and serving as a volunteer Eucharistic Minister at Mercy Hospital. “I feel directed toward what I do by the Lord; I’m spiritually connected to providing this ministry.”
For her dedication and devotion to the patients she serves, Julie was honored in April as the 2007 Mercy Hospital Volunteer of the Year.
A Spiritual Care Volunteer since 2005, Julie is most readily found providing Eucharistic Ministry services to patients on weekends.
“I like to work on back-to-back days,” explains Julie. “It provides me with the opportunity to get to know the patients I’m serving.”
Julie, who is 84, lives with her husband Edward and enjoys time with her 6 children, 20 grandchildren and numerous great grandchildren. She attends St. Stephen Parish in Port Huron Township.
“The work I do is very moving,” Julie continues. “Often, after praying with a patient, I feel so joyous my feet don’t touch the ground. Other times I leave heavyhearted and filled with a patient’s sorrow. Both of these experiences make my volunteer work meaningful and extremely important in the lives of those I serve.”
Julie was among five other volunteers who were nominated for the 2007 award. Nominees included: Jim Opferman, Fort Gratiot Township; Ardine Faucett, Kimball Township; Doris Martenson, Port Huron; Barb Heinen, St. Clair; and Bernie Lee, St. Clair.
“Mercy Hospital is proud that such a dedicated group of individuals provides care and service to our patients,” comments Peter Karadjoff, Mercy Hospital President and CEO. “Our work, our lives and our mission are greatly enhanced through the commitment of these important individuals.”
For Julie, it’s just a matter of reaching out to serve others. She is often called upon to fill in where there is a special need and patients often remark about Julie after she’s visited with them, making her work very important in Mercy’s philosophy of healing body, mind and spirit.
For more information on how you can become a Mercy Hospital volunteer or for more information regarding the Mercy Auxiliary Volunteer Organization (MAVO), please contact Cindy Henrion, at (810) 985-1674; or visit the MAVO section of this website. |
