By Daily Press staff
Santa Monicans who have reached milestones in their voluntary service at local hospitals are being honored this week for their efforts.
Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center will honor its more than 200 adult volunteers by hosting a Volunteer Recognition Luncheon and other festivities in celebration of “National Volunteer Week,” April 23 to 29.
The luncheon will recognize 50 volunteers who achieved hour and year milestones at the medical center during the past year.
Santa Monica resident Jette Simmons will be the top honoree, with more than 72,000 hours of service. Two other Westside residents, Alice Kurtz of West Los Angeles and Kuljit Marwah of Malibu, will be honored for 37,000 and 25,000 hours of service, respectively.
Jackie Leebody and Mary Edwards, both of Pacific Palisades, will be honored for reaching the 25-year milestone. Three others, Roslyn Bassett of Los Angeles, Kurtz and Mary Peppers of Santa Monica, will be recognized for 20 years of service.
The luncheon also will pay tribute to “the paper boys” — volunteers Robert Alschuler and Richard Balomben of Santa Monica and Ronald Belanger and Richard Schneidmiller of Venice — who take turns delivering newspapers to hospital patients each morning. They also perform other volunteer duties at the hospital.
Adult volunteers donated more than 45,000 hours of service to Santa Monica- UCLA in 2005 by assisting caregivers, working in non-clinical departments and running the hospital gift shop.
Santa Monica-UCLA’s volunteer workforce includes adults, pre-medical students called “care extenders,” junior volunteers ages 15 to 18 and pet-assisted activity teams that visit patients in the hospital. Local paper flying high, captures 18 awards
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on April 27, 2006. Read the original PDF.