From left are Mercy Care Mission Director Sr. Catherine Cummings, Caring Award recipient Kathy Lamb, Mercy Care Volunteer of the Year Award recipient Kathy Strack and Mercy Care board President Jerry Hayes. (Photo provided)

SARANAC LAKE — On Sept. 5, Mercy Care for the Adirondacks hosted nearly 40 elders, friendship volunteers, parish nurses and board members at Guggenheim Center on Lower Saranac Lake for its annual Friendship Picnic.

The gathering is held each year to celebrate older adults in our community and to honor and recognize the extraordinary gifts of friendship, kindness, and assistance given to their elder neighbors by Mercy Care Volunteers.

Sr. Catherine Cummings, RSM, Ed.D., R.N., Mercy Care’s mission director, welcomed everyone and said, “Our volunteers make Mercy Care’s mission possible. Mercy Care’s services are provided to elders free of charge but are freely given by our kind and generous volunteers. Our elder friends deeply appreciate your errands of mercy.”

Mercy Care invites people of all faiths to become Mercy Care friendship volunteers. Friendship volunteer training is scheduled for Oct. 8 and 15 in Saranac Lake. If you are interested in becoming a Mercy Care friendship volunteer, contact Holly Huber, program associate, at hhuber@adkmercy.org or 518-523-5583.

Cummings and Jerry Hayes, Mercy Care’s board president, presented the awards to volunteers.

The Mercy Care Volunteer of the Year Award was presented to Kathy Strack, Mercy Care friendship volunteer. The Volunteer of the Year receives the Catherine McAuley medallion, named for the woman who founded the Sisters of Mercy in Ireland in 1831. The recipient of this award exemplifies what McAuley did when she reached out to share her courage and love with those in need. Strack shares her generous spirit as she carries out her Mercy Care errands with her elder neighbors.

Kathy Lamb received the Caring Award, acknowledging her exceptional caring as she reaches out to elders in the community. She takes time to listen, reaches out to help in times of need, and makes a positive impact in the community.

Dave Warner received the Making the Difference Award. His friendly visits make a difference in the lives of elders. He has been a Mercy Care friendship volunteer since 2013. During those years, he has reached out to several elders to relieve loneliness with his weekly visits.

All of Mercy Care’s volunteers give what they can, but some volunteers have contributed over 100 hours this past year to respond to the needs of elders. They include Ellen Beideck, Julie Clement, Yvonne Farmer, Alanna Fox, Linda Jones, Martha Holmes, Collette Lettero, Penny McGill, Lou Scavo, Kathy Strack and Sr. Denise Wilke.

The Mercy Care volunteer who gave the most hours over the past year has helped elders coping with illness in her community. The Appreciation Award was presented to Linda Jones, who spent more than 220 hours and drove 1,161 miles this past year to meet the needs of our elder neighbors.

Several volunteers have been part of Mercy Care for 10 years. They were thanked for their gifts of continued dedication and friendship to their elder friends and were presented with a 10-year service pin. They include Sr. Carol Kraeger, Leisa Almekinder, Angela Pohlmann and Margo Cooper.

Five-year service pins were earned by David Aldrich, Brita Chagnon, Judy Courtney, Ginny Cuttaia, Colette Lettero, Susanne Peck, Lou Scavo, Ted Volz, David Warner and Jill Zagrobelny.

At the Friendship Picnic, Mercy Care volunteers and their elder friends were presented with an in-service program by Adirondack Health staff members Carrie Skiff and Jennie Frenette. They spoke about the pioneering new Adirondack Health initiative to develop an age-friendly health system, starting with the Emergency Department. The presentation was very well received with lots of audience engagement and dialogue.

Hayes, on behalf of all members of the board, thanked all of Mercy Care’s volunteers. He said, “More than 100 kind and generous people have responded to the need to help their elder neighbors in our Tri-Lakes area, which they are expressing through their volunteer service with Mercy Care. Mercy Care is currently assisting 121 elders in the community to help them age in place more successfully. We have trained more than 50 Parish Nurses throughout the North Country. We appreciate each and every volunteer for touching the aging in Tri-Lakes communities with mercy.”

Mercy Care for the Adirondacks is sponsored by the Sisters of Mercy. Its mission is to enhance in every dimension the fullness of life of elders living in their community. It carries out its work through a Friendship Volunteer Program, a Parish Nurse Program, a Caregiver Friend Program, a Community Empowerment Program, and an Education and Advocacy Program.