Volunteer of the Month - November 2019 - Graeme Rudd

How fortunate we were to feature in Graeme Rudd’s early retirement plans! Having attended an open day and living close enough to the Beatrice Wright Centre to often pass by, it was somewhat predestined that animal lover Graeme would approach us at some point about volunteering opportunities.

Experienced with dogs, IT savvy and with forty plus years of professional experience we couldn’t sign him and wife Jan up quick enough to join the team! What we didn’t know from the paperwork alone was how personable, witty and outgoing Graeme is and how much his warm personality would add to the busy office environment in Bielby.

Community Fundraising Area Manager Lucy Ward says: “Over the last two years Graeme has been an enormous help to the charity. He does a brilliant job covering reception on Thursday afternoons and is always happy to step in and help with extra shifts when needed. Lucky for us, Graeme is super-efficient and likes to be productive. As a result, and what many may not realise is that while covering reception he is also beavering away with fundraising research and doing a fantastic job of approaching a wide range of clubs, groups and organisation to generate support for Hearing Dogs for Deaf People”.

Never one to be idle, Graeme has placed collections tins on behalf of the charity, meticulously sorted through thousands of donated stamps, helped at events and manned our regular stall at York Hospital.

Gemma Wardle, Community Fundraising Support Officer, works alongside him: “Nothing ever seems to be too much hassle for Graeme. If he sees someone struggling or overhears that anyone has a lot of additional work to do, not only will he be the first to offer a helping hand, but he’ll also make a fantastic job of it. Thursday afternoons in the office are always improved by Graeme's presence - I look forward to our chats and jokes each week over a cuppa!"

Graeme’s communication skills and friendly manner have seen him quickly become an invaluable and very popular member of many departments at the Beatrice Wright Centre. Dog Welfare Officer, James Jones, reports: “Graeme and Jan have had a few of our dogs on holiday cover, including Rodney who they especially liked. They’re nice to work with, offer a lovely home and always happy to help. I see Graeme every week when he volunteers on reception. He’s really supportive of the team, the charity’s work and will offer to do anything he can to help if you’re busy.”

Lucy concludes: “Graeme is a real superstar and we are very lucky to have him. He’ll volunteer to help with almost anything, except carol singing which he amusingly says is just a step too far for a Bah Humbug!”

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