*Co-written with David St. Georges, community services coordinator at Canadian Red Cross, Sudbury branch *
It’s Valentines Day’s – a time to celebrate love and relationships. It has been said that a key to any successful relationship is spending quality time with your partner. Well, we have found some married couples in Ontario who do just that, while also giving back to their communities as Canadian Red Cross volunteers:
Peter and Bonnie
Peter and Bonnie Kearns volunteer at the Red Cross, Sarnia branch in disaster management, Meals on Wheels and transportation. Bonnie, also a Red Cross delegate, has been a volunteer there for 26 years, while Peter has volunteered for 10 years. One time, Bonnie and Peter were deployed the same day to two different locations: Bonnie to Afghanistan, and Peter to Florida following a hurricane there. In Bonnie’s own words: “It's great to deploy together. For one thing, you know who your roommate will be.”
Fred and Yollande Twilley have been faithful volunteers in Sudbury for over 5 years. Fred is a disaster management volunteer and is on the Sudbury Disaster Management Working Group. Yollande began volunteering through local fundraising and has recently joined the disaster management team so she and Fred can respond to local disasters together.
Vera and Jeff
Jeff and Vera Eames have been volunteers in London the past four years. Jeff is the president of the southwest regional council, while Vera played a big role in helping to organize last year’s Ontario Zone youth conference. They also help with many other branch events and activities, including the annual Walmart campaign. Jeff has worked overseas with many humanitarian organizations, and Vera – a veterinarian- has been a delegate with the ICRC.
Do you know of any amazing couples who volunteer at your local Canadian Red Cross office? We would love to hear about them.