OF SERVICE TO OTHERS

Anyone who has ever volunteered their time and energy to help further a worthy cause is likely all too familiar with the mixed feelings that often come part and parcel with the overall experience. I’m talking about that sense of satisfaction derived from being able to “do your part,” which inevitably gets intermingled with the nagging certainty that you should really be doing more. I bring up the topic now because of two inspiring stories in particular that you’ll come across on the pages to follow.

The first is our Cause for Applause selection (page 22) about the Bob Rumball Ontario Camp of the Deaf, penned by Patricia Griffiths. She and her husband Wayne were originally part-time volunteers at the camp; when the couple retired from the working world, the Rumball family invited them to take up full-time residency at the camp in exchange for the provision of groundskeeping and various custodial services. Patricia and Wayne are now doing more than ever at the camp, and have nothing but praise for the work accomplished to date by both generations of the Rumball family who have kept the camp active and of service to the deaf community and others in the Parry Sound district for more than 50 years.

Wayne Ridgeway’s Canadians Abroad story on page 42—“My Dominican Project”—is also strikingly inspirational. Proving that even a small change can have a profound impact, Wayne describes how the enhancement he made to the functionality of one cooking stove while volunteering in the Dominican Republic resulted in a major lifestyle improvement for the 225-plus households in the community he visited. Great stuff, in both cases—and we’d love to share more. Why not visit ourcanada.ca now to tell us about the good works you’re involved with!

Gary George gary_george@rd.com