St. Joseph's volunteer drivers give a lift, lend an ear

By Katie Leslie

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

On the campus of St. Joseph's Hospital in Atlanta, you can see a lot from a golf cart. Just ask Don Vann and Don Daniels, both volunteer drivers for St. Joseph's Auxiliary program.

The men are among the 30 who drive around the hospital campus, helping as many as 300 people a day who need a lift to their car, appointment, or their spirits. The service is free and the interactions are brief, but the lessons picked up along the way are lasting.

"Some of the people are grouchy, but most of them have tales to tell," said Vann, 83. "We listen a lot."

They watch a lot, too, said Daniels, 69.

He recalls watching a young couple sprinting across the parking lot holding a baby, screaming for help because their infant had stopped breathing.

"It was just all I could think about that day and night," said the Marietta father of four and grandfather of six.

The next morning, Daniels learned the baby had survived -- just the news he needed to rest his worries. 

Other stories linger with the drivers, such as the time an elderly man climbed into Daniels' cart with a box of Kleenex. He was headed to say his final good-byes to his 22-year-old grand-daughter, who was on life support after falling deathly ill from the H1N1 virus.

"The compassion comes out in you, it really does," said Daniels, who retired in 2002 from careers with ITT and Bombardier. "More than once I've had a tear in my eye."

But such dramatic experiences aren't the bulk of the job. Sure, drivers get quirky passengers -- Daniels still laughs about driving a man to the nearby Marriott so the guest could charge 10 candy bars to his hotel room because his sister-in-law refused to give him money at the hospital. But much of the time he's carting people who forgot where they parked.

Like many of the 450 volunteers at St. Joseph's, both Vann and Daniels were once patients. a heart check-up on July 15, 2002 turned into open heart surgery the same day. During his recovery from a triple bypass, he noticed others operating the carts outside his hospital window. The retired electrical engineer, who spent his career at Siemens until 1991, saw himself behind the wheel.

"I thought when my surgery was over and I was well, that's what I wanted to do," recalled the Dunwoody man.

Now he manages the program, drives a cart four hours on Wednesdays and trains other volunteers. Driving is the easy part, he said. "There's nothing to it if you play golf at all." But learning the maze that is the unmarked parking lot, running above and below ground, is the challenge.

Choosing the golf cart gig was easy for Vann, also a volunteer at The Alliance Theatre.

"We don't have that many who really want to do this, because we do it year-round -- rain, sun or snow. Most guys would rather work inside the hospital, but I don't really like sick people," he said with a chuckle.

Carol Glass began St. Joseph's Auxiliary Service in 2001 and explains that participants choose from 27 jobs, including mail and flower delivery, assisting patients with directions, check-out and operation of gift and coffee shops. Volunteers wear signature red tops to stand out as helpers.

"It's just awesome. The hospital, especially the CEO [Kirk Wilson], has said that the volunteers aren't just the icing on the cake. We couldn't run the hospital without them," Glass said, noting most volunteers are retired Atlantans. "It gives people purpose."

And it gives the visitors a steady stream of familiar, friendly faces.

"A lot of the people know me, but I don't always know them," said Daniels, with a smile. "But you have to act like you do."