Yvonne's story

Yvonne joined the Cornwall Hospice Care team in 2015

What were you doing before you became a volunteer?

I was a practice manager at a GP surgery, consisting of 4 GPs, a team of admin staff, practice nurses and phlebotomists. I was working there for 42 years, the last 22 years as a practice manager.

What inspired you to become a volunteer?

Retirement made me think of volunteering opportunities.  I looked at the Volunteer Cornwall website and decided to volunteer at the hospice as my mum had her end of life care there and I realised what an amazing place it was and this gave me the means to give something back.

What do you get out of being a volunteer?

Volunteering brings structure to my week and is a win/win for both the hospice and myself. I have known several people who just give up when they retire and it was always my aim to do something worthwhile with my spare time.  I have worked all my life and the prospect of doing nothing was a little daunting.