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S. Robert and Denise Zeilstra Gift Shop. Janet Sedgwick
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S. Robert and Denise Zeilstra
Gift Shop Janet Sedgwick
“ To anyone interested in volunteer work, I definitely recommend considering Huntington Health,” says Janet Sedgwick, regular S. Robert and Denise Zeilstra Gift Shop volunteer. “You’ll love the people who you work with. And it leaves you with the best feeling, knowing that you helped brighten the day of patients and staff.”
Janet began volunteering here in 2019 when a friend recommended it. It was a perfect fit for Janet, who has a background in health care and a desire to give back to her Pasadena community. Aside from a pause during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, she has been a regular volunteer at our gift shop ever since.
Her connection to Huntington goes beyond volunteer work. Janet has also been a patient. Whenever she has received care here, as she recalls, “the experience and care were always phenomenal.”
Community support. Janet knows great care when she sees it. She was a critical care nurse for 11 years, back when she lived in Iowa. She especially knows the value of compassionate, personalized care. It is one of the things she loves about our hospital. “Huntington has the feeling of a community hospital,” she notes. “The health care workers deliver such personal care. It’s like a big city with a small-town atmosphere.”
In addition to her duties with the gift shop, Janet has volunteered in our Nan and Howard Schow Emergency & Trauma Center, where she provided patients with blankets, answered call lights and more.
Janet believes strongly in supporting her community, and spends time volunteering for several other organizations. When not volunteering, Janet can often be found crafting or gardening.
All smiles. During her volunteer hours at the gift shop, Janet works the cash register, restocks and prices items, helps customers and creates attractive displays highlighting the shop’s diverse inventory.
Janet loves bringing joy to visitors and staff through simple acts of customer service such as gift-wrapping products and delivering flowers. “Nothing beats bringing a smile to customers’ faces,” she says.
Knowing that she is making a positive difference in both patient and staff lives is deeply rewarding for Janet. There is, she says, only one downside: “the impact on my pocketbook! I can’t help but buy things at the gift shop all the time. The products are so different from what you can find anywhere else!”
