'Helping the Place that Helped Me'

Eric Bernath feeds patients breakfast. Stuart Neiman greets people at the welcome desk. Odessa Terry helps set up a weekly yoga class for patients.

These three are among the 100 volunteers serving Shepherd Center, and they are all giving back to the place that changed their lives.

“So many former patients are interested in volunteering, and they tell me, ‘I want to do this because someone did it for me,’” says Alex Seblatnigg, CAVS, CPXP, Shepherd Center’s director of volunteer services and internal engagement. “For someone to want to come back after a traumatic injury because of the care they received and the support they felt is a real testament to the experience they had as a patient. It has everything to do with the people who touched their lives while they were here.”

Volunteers play an essential role at Shepherd Center, serving in various positions such as helping with clerical duties, mail delivery, feeding patients, peer support, serving as gym runners, and staffing the welcome desk. They also contribute to Shepherd’s trademark culture and warmth.

“Former patients offer a unique perspective,” Seblatnigg says. “They have lived the experience and help patients see life after Shepherd Center.”

Stuart Neiman sustained a spinal cord injury in a body surfing accident in 2015. He was at Shepherd Center for 10 weeks, learning to walk again and regaining use of his hands.

He retired in 2022 and was looking for a place to spend his newfound spare time. He looked no further than Shepherd Center.

“I have so much appreciation for what they did for me,” Stuart says, “and I wanted to give back. It’s an amazing place.”  

Stuart works at the welcome desk every Wednesday morning, saying hello to visitors as they walk into the hospital. For many, he’s the first point of contact they have at Shepherd Center and makes them feel welcome and at ease.

“I really enjoy greeting people, and it’s rewarding to see everybody’s positivity.”

Odessa Terry says it’s in her nature to want to help others. She was in school studying to be a social worker when she had a stroke in 2017 at just 20 years old. She spent two months in Shepherd Center’s Brain Injury Rehabilitation Program, working on her speech, balance, and mobility.

She began volunteering at Shepherd Center five years ago, first at the coffee kiosk, re-stocking the supplies for coffee. After the pandemic, Odessa returned to work in the gym, helping set up the yoga class. Her duties include laying down mats and pulling out any equipment needed for the class. After class, she puts everything away.

“I like meeting people and helping them,” says Odessa, who has returned to school and plans to finish her social work degree. “And Shepherd Center is such a good place.”

Eric Bernath is part of the “The Breakfast Club,” a corps of dedicated volunteers who come early to help feed patients. He remembers the volunteers who fed him when he could not feed himself.

Eric sustained a spinal cord injury after a forklift accident in 2018. When he came to Shepherd Center, he had no feeling below his neck. He spent seven weeks at Shepherd Center, working to regain strength and function. Like Stuart, he was able to walk out of the hospital.

In 2019, he walked back in, enlisting as a volunteer, working as a gym runner, Peer Support, and feeding patients.

“I wanted something positive to come out of my accident, and I wanted my experience to have an impact on someone in a similar situation,” Eric says. “It’s been very rewarding. I know it is helping the place that helped me.”

Written by Sara Baxter