Thousands of Volunteered Hours of Pet Therapy, Crafts and More Honored
|
|
(Left to Right) Reuven Pasternak, MD, Chief Executive Officer, Stony Brook University Hospital, Sharon Dang, 2016 Junior Volunteer of the Year Awardee, Carolyn Santora, MS, RN Chief of Regulatory Affairs Interim Chief Nursing Officer, Stony Brook University Hospital, Michael Maione, Administrator for Customer Services, Stony Brook University Hospital |
Stony Brook, NY, July 21, 2016
— Stony Brook University Hospital has named Mickey (Michael) Martin with his pet therapy dog Lucy as the Senior Volunteers of the Year and Sharon Dang as Junior Volunteer of the Year in recognition of their dedicated volunteer service to the Hospital.
Martin and Dang were among those honored at the Hospital’s annual Volunteer Recognition Luncheon, held on Wednesday, July 13 at the Hilton Garden Inn. Volunteers received awards for reaching service milestones ranging from 100 to 16,000 hours of service. Beautiful baskets and gifts, which were donated by several hospit
al
departments, were also given as door prizes.
|
|
2016 Senior Volunteer of the Year Awardees Mickey (Michael) Martin and his pet therapy dog Lucy |
Resident of Ronkonkoma Mickey Martin, along with his Labrador Retriever Lucy, began service in 2008 and have donated nearly 500 volunteer hours. Martin is a part of the Hospital’s Pet Therapy team, and Lucy is a pet therapy canine certified by Therapy Dogs International.
During Martin’s tenure at Stony Brook, he has spent the majority of his time visiting with patients in the Children’s Hospital, along with other units including Psychiatry, and participates in special events such as “Bring our Children to Work Day.” He is always willing to come into the hospital on his days off from volunteering if a patient has been identified as needing an extra special boost.
Martin and Lucy’s wonderful service to the hospital has recently been highlighted on News 12 Long Island and
FiOS1 News
.
Resident of Hauppauge Sharon Dang began volunteering in 2013 and has donated over 300 hours to Stony Brook Children’s Hospital. She engages pediatric patients in craft activities bedside or in the playroom. Child Life Specialists are impressed with Dang’s ability to put patients at ease with her enjoyable personality and excellent communication skills.
“Sharon exhibits great leadership skills and has a strong work ethic,” said Michael Attard, Child Life Specialist, “She is a professional and extremely mature young woman.
 |
|
Janice Mollet (center), recognized for 16,000 hours of service, with Kathy Kress (left), Assistant Director of Volunteer Services, Stony Brook University Hospital, and Patricia Greene (right) from Volunteer Services |
2000 Volunteer of the Year Award winner Janice Mollet was also recognized for reaching 16,000 service hours this year. She is a retired employee from the Health Sciences Library who has been volunteering at Stony Brook since March 1992 and currently volunteers in the Volunteer Office.
Stony Brook University Hospital volunteers provide help each year caring for patients and spending time with patients’ family members. Each year, more than 600 volunteers assist staff with the day-to-day work that contributes to a quality healthcare experience for patients and families.
Volunteer assignments are available seven days a week between 7:00 am and 8:30 pm. To learn more or to become a volunteer, please call (631) 444-2610 or visit
http://bit.ly/29o65PG
.
###
About Stony Brook University Hospital:
Stony Brook University Hospital (SBUH) is Long Island’s premier academic medical center. With 603 beds, SBUH serves as the region’s only tertiary care center and Regional Trauma Center, and is home to the Stony Brook University Heart Institute, Stony Brook University Cancer Center, Stony Brook Children’s Hospital, Stony Brook University Neurosciences Institute, and Stony Brook University Digestive Disorders Institute. SBUH also encompasses Suffolk County’s only Level 4 Regional Perinatal Center, state-designated AIDS Center, state-designated Comprehensive Psychiatric Emergency Program, state-designated Burn Center, the Christopher Pendergast ALS Center of Excellence, and Kidney Transplant Center. It is home of the nation’s first Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis Center. To learn more, visit www.stonybrookmedicine.edu.
