Let’s start 2020 off with a couple of our fantastic volunteers, Terry Birt and Louise Lynch. We thank you both for your enthusiasm , hard work and dedication.
Many of the folks at the Senior Center know Terry as the current Club 55 President, he has been in this position for the last two years. You may also know him as the gentleman always selling Club 55 raffle tickets!
Terry decided to start volunteering at the center five years ago after he retired from being an engineer at Electric Boat. He felt he had to do something and wanted to be active and that the center would be a good place because there’s other folks his age here. When asked why he continues to volunteer he stated “Everyone at the center is very active, there’s a lot of good people and there are lots of activities. Too many to do”.
When asked, Terry said his favorite volunteer activity to do at the center is “The Raffle”. He absolutely loves it , you will often see him around the center selling raffle tickets. He jokingly said, “The raffle has become my baby” as he sold 5 tickets.
Terry is from Vermont and married with five children. He is an avid reader and enjoys traveling. The longest trip he ever took was when he drove to Alaska in 2008 with friends in a camper from the end of May through September on a National Parks Tour and ended up staying in Alaska for 6 of those weeks.
Just as committed to Groton Senior Center, you will often find the lovely Louise behind the scenes volunteering, she is quiet but mighty. She works hard and will pitch in anywhere that she is needed. Louise stated that her favorite part of volunteering is the physical work. She absolutely loves to move chairs, tables and work alongside with her buddy Obie she said that “It’s a laugh a minute.”
The reason Louise started to volunteer is because she felt her life wasn’t as full as it had been when she was raising her four children and working as a nurse. She also felt that she needed something more to fill her life with besides an occasional lunch with a friend and dance class.
Volunteering for the center for five years, she says that GSC has a warm atmosphere and everybody is friendly and easy to talk to. Sharing that her life is so full due to our GSC community and says, “you just feel like you’ve always been here.” She added “I get more out of helping than anyone else does.” In her spare time, her hobbies include scrapbooking, volunteering at The Garde Arts Center and vacationing in Cayman Islands with her beloved family. We deeply appreciate you both!