ON FRIDAY, MARY Ann Merrill stopped by the ECHHO office on Jefferson Street to pick up a four-wheeled walker.
The walker was for a friend in Cape George who is recuperating from back surgery, but it’s not the first call she’s made to ECHHO for help.
“We had to use it in the past when my husband was bucked off a horse,” she said. “It’s a wonderful service. I don’t think the community could do without it.”
It doesn’t have to. Unlike social service agencies that are cutting back, ECHHO, which stands for Ecumenical Christian Helping Hands Organization, is going strong.
In fact, the volunteer-run, nonprofit organization set a record in May, loaning out 161 pieces of medical equipment free of charge.
“The need has increased so much, I think we’ll see those records blown away,” said Lori Oberlander, ECHHO’s new director.
ECHHO volunteers also provide transportation free of charge to medical appointments in four counties, including driving people to daily cancer treatments.
The key to keeping it up and running: a steady influx of volunteers who flow into leadership positions.
They include Oberlander, who took over as executive director in June. The former director of Habitat for Humanity/Kitsap County, Oberlander is volunteering her time and skills while working on a master’s degree in business administration in nonprofit management at Seattle University.
Win-win situation
It’s a win-win situation, she said, giving her ready-made projects for class assignments and a network of contacts in the community.
“It’s always better to have a job when you are looking for a job,” she said, “and it gives you a reason to get up in the morning.”
Oberlander was an ECHHO volunteer, as is Tom Branigan, head of the ECHHO board.
A retired public relations director for an aerospace firm, Branigan first heard about the organization from longtime friend Hank Hazen, a board member.
Branigan started volunteering when he moved to Port Townsend a few years ago and like other board members continues to help in the field, transporting people to medical appointments.
“They are out in the community, feeling the joy from the caregivers, providing services directly,” Oberlander said. “They are servants as well as board members.”
Lori and spouse Todd Oberlander have been part of the Jefferson County community since 2006, when they moved to Port Ludlow. They now live in Port Hadlock, where they built a house.
Todd is the information technology manager for Jefferson County. He met Lori, who is originally from Long Island, N.Y., when they were both in the Navy and stationed at Bangor Sub Base.
They had only known each other for eight weeks, Lori said, when she was reassigned to the NATO base in Naples, Italy. Wanting to be together, they went ahead and tied the knot.
“Everybody said it would never work,” Lori said. “That was 27 years ago.”
The first glimmers of ECHHO began in 1997 when Jeanette and Bruce Travis and Shirley Champion saw a need in the community to help people, especially seniors with health problems who had no family nearby.
The Travises’ church, First Presbyterian, provided office space for the organization, and Bruce served as the director, volunteering his time until he retired in 2005.
ECHHO now occupies the entire house next door, formerly the church parsonage. On the main floor are offices for Oberlander and staff members Wilma Hackman and Marlena Knill, who take phone calls and match care receivers with volunteers.
Walt Hill, the medical equipment manager, presides over the basement, where floor-to-ceiling shelves hold walkers, canes and other equipment.
He also has a workshop for repairs in the basement and a storage unit in Glen Cove for hospital beds.
Overflow space
The upstairs living room and kitchen of the house provide overflow space for electric scooters and other equipment.
Also on staff is Rich Heitman, an intern provided by the Olympic Area Agency on Aging, who manages the online newsletter, www.echhojc.org.
On the website is the logo: two hands forming a heart on a red background and a blue cross. A network of 17 churches throughout Jefferson County provides financial support for ECHHO, Oberlander said, as does the OAAA, United Good Neighbors and Jefferson Healthcare.
According to the annual report, ECHHO’s cadre of volunteers provided a helping hand to 849 people and loaned out more than 1,450 pieces of equipment in 2010, a threefold increase in the past eight years.
More than 40,000 miles
Volunteers drove more than 40,000 miles, primarily taking people to medical appointments.
Interspersed with the figures are stories about the heart of ECHHO, the people who give and receive help.
They included an 87-year old man who needed a ride to Bremerton for kidney dialysis two to three times a week. His wife, who accompanied him each time, expressed their gratitude for both the rides and the cheerful support the couple received during his last days.
“Almost daily, we get comments and thank-you cards saying how wonderful the volunteers are and how helpful the services are,” Oberlander said.
Branigan and Oberlander are looking forward to 2012, when ECHHO will reach its 15th anniversary, and planning how to celebrate. A communitywide event is an option, one that will shout out its mission and reach more corners of the community with its message: to help one another.
ECHHO volunteers also do occasional household chores, shopping and errands, and help with packing and moving. All services are provided without charge.
A referral from a minister, doctor or agency is necessary for services to ensure the safety of volunteers.
Medical equipment is available without referral at the office, 1110 Jefferson St., Port Townsend, on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. To volunteer, phone 360-379-3246 or email echhopt@qwestoffice.net.
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Jennifer Jackson writes about Port Townsend and Jefferson County every Wednesday. To contact her with items for this column, phone 360-379-5688 or email jjackson@olypen.com.
