We are endlessly grateful to our volunteers for giving their time to better the lives of those impacted by Alzheimer’s and other dementias. Our volunteers are truly the heart of the Alzheimer’s Association here in North Carolina.
In honor of National Volunteer Week 2020, we’ll be spotlighting a different volunteer from our Chapter each day. Today we are featuring…
Gina Jenkins
Hickory, NC
What brought you to volunteer with the Alzheimer’s Association?
I volunteer because after my daddy passed with this disease, I wanted others to have hope. I wanted to be able to give back in some way, even if just to raise awareness. I don’t want daddy’s life to ever be forgotten. I don’t want his death to become just another statistic. I want him to be remembered for the amazing man he was, never remembered as an Alzheimer’s patient who lost his life to this disease. I want to always make him proud and I know that this is one way I can continue to do that.
What volunteer role(s) do you have with the Association?
Chair for Walk to End Alzheimer’s – Hickory
Walk to End Alzheimer’s Planning Committee help grow the movement to end Alzheimer’s from the ground up. Committee members plan each Walk event from the kick-off to the wrap-up. Some committee members focus on growing the event by recruiting teams, getting Walk materials out in the community and securing sponsorships. Others focus on event production and find ways to enhance the event experience.
What do you enjoy most about your volunteer role?
My biggest joy is WALK DAY! It’s the only day that Alzheimer’s is absolutely beautiful! The energy on this day is moving. The people come together as strangers, sharing a common bond of love and understanding and also of struggle. We laugh together, we cry together, we hug one another and we leave having made new friends, we realize that we are not alone in this fight. Rain or shine, walk day is a glorious day!
What piece of your role do you feel makes the biggest impact?
One word – Positivity! It’s infectious and it only breeds more positivity.
If someone were considering volunteering with the Association, what would you say to them?
Just do it! The reward outweighs everything else. With all the horribleness that is Alzheimer’s, being a light for someone else, because of your volunteering, is priceless. You may think you’re only helping others, but you’re also filling your own heart and uncovering some goodness in such a devastating disease.
THANK YOU, GINA
Volunteers truly help move our mission forward. Interested in becoming a volunteer with the Alzheimer’s Association in NC?
Visit alz.org/get-involved-now/volunteer or call 800-272-3900.
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