The Medical Center Auxiliary honored more than 100 teen volunteers at an appreciation dinner this week at the Brenau Downtown Center.
“Teen volunteers add such a special brilliance to the hospital campuses with bright smiles, cheerful hellos and an eagerness to serve where needed while exploring future healthcare career options,” said Nancy Colston, president and chief development officer of The Medical Center Foundation.
This summer’s group made history as being the first teen volunteers to serve on the new Northeast Georgia Medical Center Braselton campus.
"We look forward to the Teen Volunteer Program each year, and it is very exciting to see the branch of The Medical Center Auxiliary and volunteer services established at the Braselton campus,” said Meah Garrison, manager of Volunteer Services at NGMC Braselton. “The teen volunteers touch the lives of many patients, visitors and staff – and we appreciate their dedication, enthusiasm and service during their short summer break."
Dot Dusenberry, vice president of The Medical Center Auxiliary, presented one $700 Teen Scholarship Award to Connor Grady. Connor has volunteered in the teen program for three years and served more than 300 hours. He graduated from Johnson High School and plans to attend the University of Georgia to major in Biology with a Pre-Med intent.
Bethany Magnus, an Auxiliary board member and teen committee co-chair, presented The Andrew J. Dockery Teen Volunteer of the Year Award and a $700 scholarship to Betty Huynh. Betty has volunteered since 2013 and given more than 400 hours. She graduated from Gainesville High School and plans to attend Georgia Gwinnett College in the fall to study Nursing.
The Medical Center Auxiliary sponsors a creative writing contest for teen volunteers each summer. The teens are encouraged to write a short essay about what their volunteering experience has meant to them. Amy Booth, Volunteer Services coordinator, presented awards to this year’s winner, Indira Islas, and to second place recipient McNeely Rockwell.
The Medical Center Auxiliary also sponsors a t-shirt design contest. Teens were asked to use the theme “Teen Volunteers: The Essential Piece” to create a unique design. All teens received a shirt with the winning design as a gift from the Auxiliary. First place was awarded to Tucker Buffington and second place to Emily Dufty.
“Teen Volunteers are essential to the success of the volunteer program and truly demonstrated a willingness to help others this summer by giving more than 3,800 hours of service at the Medical Center,” said Lynne Allen, director of Volunteer Services at NGMC. “We were very pleased to recognize a record number of 32 graduated seniors from 13 area schools who contributed 4,000 hours of volunteer service during high school. They are an impressive group of teens who certainly made many valuable contributions to the Medical Center’s Volunteer Program. We also appreciate the Teen Program co-chairs, Meg Nivens and Bethany Magnus, for their leadership and service.”
Seventy-seven volunteers received awards for completing 30 or more hours of service. Also honored were five teens who gave more than 200 hours of service: Elizabeth D’Antonio (200 hours), Sarah Williamson (200 hours), Connor Grady (300 hours), Betty Huynh (400 hours) and Indira Islas (600 hours).
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Photo 1: Bethany Magnus, teen committee co-chair, presents Betty Huynh with the Andrew J. Dockery Teen Volunteer of the Year award and a $700 Teen Scholarship Award. Betty was also honored for providing 400 hours of service.
Photo 2: Dot Dusenberry, vice president of The Medical Center Auxiliary, presents Connor Grady with a $700 Teen Scholarship Award. He was also honored for providing 300 hours of service.
Photo 3 (L to R): Amy Booth, Volunteer Services coordinator, Indira Islas, teen volunteer honoree, Connor Grady, teen volunteer honoree, Betty Huynh, teen volunteer honoree, and Meah Garrison, Volunteer Services manager at NGMC Braselton.
Photo 4: Amy Booth, Volunteer Services coordinator, presents Tucker Buffington with the award for winning the t-shirt design contest.