Thursday afternoon, I had the pleasure of attending the annual National Volunteer Week Luncheon honoring the Auxiliary at Bryan W. Whitfield Memorial Hospital.

For those of you unfamiliar with the Auxiliary, those are among the hardest-working and most underpaid men and women in the business. This group of dedicated volunteers donate in excess of 100 hours each year in support roles to our local hospital.

If you’ve ever walked through the doors of BWWMH and asked a question, it’s more than likely you were helped by an Auxiliary member.

Recognized at the event were new Auxiliary members Carolyn Nelson and Betty and Paula Nichols.

Among those honored at the event for their years in service were Ruth Gaines (five years), Betty McCormick (15 years), Grace Perolio (25 years) and Genida Johnson and Edith Whitfield (35 years each).

Also recognized were the men and women who have dedicated upwards of 650 hours of their time to the hospital.

Those providing up to 200 hours were Johnnie Knott, Angie Hurns, Jim Krawezyk, Lynn Brasfield, Nell Gibson, Carolyn Nelson, Virginia Kidd, Juliette McNamara, Edith Whitfield, Dorothy Wright, Betty Baxley, Genida Johnson, Mae Johnson, Ruth Gaines, Carol Glass, Hilda Elmore, Jimmie McCollum, Daphne Glaser, Grace Perolio, Toni Rutledge and Marie Taylor.

Those dedicating up to 250 hours were Aubrey Randall, Betty McCormick, Ruth Randall, Peggy Dunklin, Eloise Wilkerson, Dashiell McKay, Biboo Webb, Rachel Lamb, Kathy Patterson, Margaret Carter, Dorothy Russell, Sandra Harrison and Charlotte Criswell.

The men and women providing between 250 and 500 hours service were Austin Caldwell, Linda Burnham, Rebecca Culpepper, Ronnie Hainley, Marge Reinecke, Mary Barnes, Nellie Adams, Carolyn Davison, Alice Boggs, Buddy Jones, Betty McCants and Sharon Farst.

Finally, those with more than 1,000 hours of service combined were Ruth Levitz (559.5) and Brenda Parr (651).

Brenda Parr was also recognized, via a vote of her peers, as the Auxiliary’s Volunteer of the Year.

Six hundred and fifty-one hours service is the equivalent of more than 81 eight-hour days. Considering that’s nearly three months of volunteer work, the services she’s provided to the hospital and its staff are invaluable.

Please know that we all appreciate the work of the Auxiliary and its staff for the roles they play in making our local hospital the best it can be.

Jason Cannon is editor and publisher of the Demopolis Times.