Mission Moment: Volunteers — Spending Time, Sharing Freely

On any given day, dozens of volunteers donate their time and talents at Shepherd Center, filling critical roles with patient care and behind the scenes. The days begin early—starting on the breakfast shift, helping patients with the most important meal of the day. “The breakfast volunteers really set the tone for someone’s day,” says Alex Seblatnigg, CAVS, director of volunteer services and internal engagement. “They are a key part of what we do here every day.”

Indeed, says CEO Jamie Shepherd, “this place is built on volunteerism,” beginning with co-founder Alana Shepherd, who has never taken a salary but still comes in almost every day. Shepherd Center has about 100 volunteers who commit to regular shifts once or twice a week. In addition to 6:45 a.m. breakfast-feeding duties, volunteers may deliver patient mail, serve as gym assistants, or visit with families of new patients to make sure they know all the resources that are available to them. Sometimes they sit at the welcome desk—the first of many smiling faces that a visitor sees when they walk into Shepherd. 

Volunteers range in age from 15 to 80-something. Some of the younger volunteers are exploring potential careers in physical therapy or occupational therapy. But many of the most dedicated volunteers are former patients or family members who simply want to give back to the place that meant so much to them. 

“One volunteer was a spinal cord program patient 20 years ago,” Alex says. “She’s so grateful for the care she received, she will say, ‘Tell me what you need me to do.’ And she comes and does it, even on days when she’s dealing with some pain from her injury.” 

Zach Wilson, 82, started volunteering for “the breakfast club” more than 12 years ago, and now helps train all the new recruits, in addition to handling his own shift as a feeder every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. “One of the things I stress in training is that this may be the only non-medical, social interaction the patient has in the course of the day,” Zach says. Between all the therapy sessions, physical exams, and doctor visits, the meals offer a time for pure conversation. “I’m not doing this for the patients; I’m doing this for me,” Zach says. “I get so much more out of it than I give.” 

Like Zach, who worked for years at a giant financial advisory firm, many volunteers are retired businesspeople who are looking for meaningful ways to spend their newfound free time. But others, like Zach’s son Zachary, feed patients before their workday begins. 

Hawda Shukralla is a 21-year-old student at Georgia State University, where she is studying biology in hopes of becoming a medical doctor specializing in rehabilitation of children with spinal cord injuries. She is motivated by her own T-9 spinal cord injury, which she sustained in late 2019—on her 16th birthday— stemming from transverse myelitis, a rare autoimmune disease. She uses a manual wheelchair for mobility. 

Every Monday and Tuesday, she volunteers in Shepherd Center’s Peer Support Program, providing a basic introduction to new patients. And every Wednesday morning, she helps with breakfast duties. “Just having a conversation and hopefully making someone smile, I think that’s great,” Hawda says. “I feel like I get something out of it, too.” 

Hawda did her inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation at Children’s Hospital of Atlanta but found herself drawn to Shepherd Center after feeling the effects of COVID isolation. “I felt very alone,” she says. “I signed up for the ProMotion gym, and there I heard about volunteer orientation. I thought, ‘I would like to be here as much as I can, so I might as well volunteer!’” 

At Shepherd, Hawda found her community and her calling. “The more you try, the easier it will get,” she tells new patients. “Even now, I’m not the best at everything, but I’m better at it than the first day I started. And if I start something new tomorrow, I’m going to struggle. But I’m thinking about the future.”

Written by Teresa Weaver

This story is an excerpt from “Mission Moments: 50 Years of Rebuilding Lives One Moment at a Time,” a book celebrating Shepherd’s 50th anniversary in 2025.