UConn Health volunteers who work at the main information desk are doing something a little different this holiday. Instead of exchanging gifts with each other, the dozen or so volunteers decided to contribute that gift money to something benefitting the hospital. The group chose to help stock the snack cart used in the cancer center. The volunteers wheel the cart twice a day through the infusion room of the Neag Comprehensive Cancer Center.
“We get more satisfaction out of this than the little gifts we give to each other,” says volunteer Bill Katz. “The cancer patients really light up when we bring the cart around. They really enjoy the extra attention and the volunteers feel good doing it.”
The donor-funded snack cart started making its rounds in September of this year. The volunteers’ generosity will mean more than three months-worth of snacks for cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy and other treatments.
“Patients can be here for four to eight hours a day, having the complimentary snack cart allows patients to receive snacks they might have not been able to get due to being connected to their IV the entire day,” explains Heather Jimenez, administrative program coordinator for the cancer center. “The patients enjoy the snack cart just as much as the volunteers enjoy administering the snacks. It’s a win-win for both parties involved. We try to make the patient’s experience during this difficult time a little better in any way we can.”