Volunteer Spotlight | Kevin Wasylyshen

How did Kevin find Baptist Housing?

"I spent time with my sick grandmother in a Calgary seniors community in Calgary in the fall of 2015. During my time there I noticed that the nurses would assist other Residents that were agitated or restless with an iPod and headphones instead of sedation medications. I was amazed to see how calm most seniors became with the music instead of being sedated with medications and I was impressed. When my grandmother passed and I returned to Kelowna I shared with my wife some of the amazing transformations I had seen in Residents that were given an iPod and headphones to listen to music. I am personally a music lover and commented to my wife what a great program the seniors community offered for these seniors. About 6 months later my wife showed me an ad that was posted on Castanet that Baptist Housing in Kelowna was looking for Music and Memory Volunteers. The organization I work for offers employees up to 2 hours a month to volunteer as part of being a good community partner and I had been talking to my wife about finding somewhere to volunteer and she encouraged me to apply for the position. I applied and met with Brenda Sheppard and I’ve been a volunteer for the program ever since."

How does volunteering impact him?

"Knowing how music affects me in such a positive way and how it can uplift my moods I believe this is a wonderful program for the Residents of Baptist Housing. Knowing that I can assist these Residents to relive great memories or special times in their lives, and to help pass the time away each day is very rewarding to me and is why I volunteer my time with Baptist Housing."

What makes Kevin so sweet?

Whatchamacallit chocolate bar (found only in the US).

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