Eunice Lyons: Dubbo’s longest serving Pink Lady
ON behalf of the Pink Ladies at Dubbo Base Hospital, Jenny Kelly spoke with Dubbo Photo News to recognise the unwavering commitment of their longest serving volunteer.
Eunice Lyons joined Pink Ladies back in 1982 because she was looking for something else to do, and 36 years later she has said that she loved every minute of it.
“She went along and they first said, ‘Oh dear you are very young to be joining Pink Ladies,’ because she was obviously only 45,” Jenny told Dubbo Photo News.
“She started off doing the library run, which meant that she went down to the town library to pick books up to replace the ones they’d had the week before.
“She then took over the treasurer’s job – she has been doing that now for 29 years. Part of that job was for her to do the purchasing for all the equipment and things that we bought for the hospital, using the money we received through donations.
“Each department is asked if they have a wish list as such, and then as soon as we have the money to fulfil the wish list we go ahead and purchase all of the goods. Eunice was in charge of all of that.
“In the hospital she has been working in the wards, in oncology and in mental health. Back then when she first started, they used to do other things, but this is what she has been doing lately.
“She also used to liaise with Mental Health, which is something that Pink Ladies do not usually do, and go over and make sure they had clothing. Another thing she did was run the clothing pool for Pink Ladies, which is a damn big job!”
However, due to ill health, she has had to resign her position as treasurer.
“Over the years she has received volunteer awards and awards for Senior’s Week, which meant a lot to her. Last year we nominated her for a Life Membership award from the United Health Association (UHA), which she got. She was really honoured – the first pink lady to receive that award.
“The UHA Life Membership was awarded in Tweed Heads last October, but Eunice wasn’t well enough to attend, so her son Wayne went and accepted the award on her behalf.
“Everybody in the hospital all know and associate Pink Ladies with Eunice. If you mention Pink Ladies they’ll say ‘oh yeah, little Eunice Lyons’.
“The part she loved most about it was the rapport with the patients and the staff in the hospital, and the opportunity of meeting people from all walks of life.
“She went out of her way to go over and above (everyone’s expectations). It wasn’t just once a week to fill a roster – she has devoted her whole life to it,” Jenny said.