Embracing change and giving back to the community: Chandra’s story
When Chandra was made redundant from his job as a Systems Controller, he embraced early retirement and began looking for a way to give back to his community. He used to drive past his local Sue Ryder hospice every day and always wanted to volunteer there. Now that ambition has come to fruition, as Chandra celebrates his one-year volunteering anniversary. He talks about what volunteering means to him, and how he’s been welcomed into the team.
Using my expertise to give something back
My dad passed away a couple of years ago. He ran a charitable eye hospital in West Bengal, India, along with the rest of my family. My grandad started it with just 10 beds, but now we have 250, and carry out 22,000 eye operations a year free of charge.
I’m very involved with the charity and doing fundraising for them, so I wanted to use this expertise to give something back to my local community as well. When I enquired about volunteering at Sue Ryder, everyone was so enthusiastic and welcoming.
People think it’s all doom and gloom, but all the families are so positive. They want to make the most of the time they have together.
I started out helping at the hospice once a week. It’s been such an excellent experience. I serve lunch, talk to patients and their families, offer drinks to people visiting and make sure they’re comfortable.
My wife is a GP, and she warned me about how hard it can be working with palliative patients. It is definitely challenging at times, but I’ve managed to cope with it so far.
The amazing thing about being on the ward is that people think it’s all doom and gloom, but all the families are so positive. They want to make the most of the time they have together.
All the staff work with big smiles on their faces.
Patients say it’s so different from hospital, and the way they’re looked after at Sue Ryder is so much better. All the staff work with big smiles on their faces – I’ve never seen anyone looking upset. It’s a great atmosphere, and I really look forward to going every week.
I’ve also started volunteering as part of the gardening team at the hospice. There’s so many local people from different backgrounds, and it’s been amazing to be a part of such a diverse group. It’s a lot of hard physical work, but it’s really rewarding too.
Starting as a shop volunteer
Then I started volunteering at my local Sue Ryder shop as well. I’ve never worked in a shop before, so I’m learning lots of new skills.
People come and talk to me about their experiences
It’s lovely to see how the local community is so supportive of Sue Ryder. People come and talk to me about their experiences, and they’re so passionate and complementary about the support they’ve had.
It's incredible to see what people will buy when you display it well. You learn a lot about how human psychology works watching what people bring to the till!
Fundraising for Sue Ryder
One day, I was discussing some ideas with the fundraising team at the hospice about a walking event, and they said, ‘Why don’t you do it yourself?’ So that’s exactly what I did!
A group of ten volunteers walked 15k in June, and everyone’s fundraising efforts raised over £1,600 for Sue Ryder. We started and finished at the hospice, and everyone really enjoyed the day. I’m very proud of what we achieved.
The benefits of volunteering
Volunteering at Sue Ryder has been so beneficial to me from a mental health point of view.
Volunteering gives me great satisfaction, being a part of such a strong community.
I’ve met so many new people, it keeps me active and makes me feel valued. It gives me great satisfaction, being a part of such a strong community.