Scooter Makes Life Easier for Volunteer

Jim Bennett of Guntown is back delivering mail to patients at NMMC, thanks to his new scooter.

TUPELO, Miss.-It’s hard to keep Jim Bennett of Guntown still for long.

For 13 years Bennett worked in Ambassador Services then Supply, Processing and Distribution at North Mississippi Medical Center. Health problems forced him to retire in 2003. Shortly after retiring he was back at NMMC as a volunteer in the Critical Care Unit, delivering mail to patient’s rooms and manning the lobby Information Desk.

After complications from back surgery in 2009, Bennett had to cut back on his volunteer duties. “It was just too hard for me to walk,” he said. He used a cane and continued to work the Information Desk but could no longer visit patient rooms-until he got a scooter earlier this year.

“I have loved doing the job I do here at the hospital,” Bennett said. “I got the scooter so I could continue doing what I like to do.”

His new ride allows him to cover more territory at NMMC. “It gives me a chance to talk to more people,” he said.

Since 2003, Bennett has logged more than 2,800 volunteer hours and was named Volunteer of the Year in 2007. After dropping his wife, Rita, off at her job, he volunteers for eight hours each Friday and whenever else he is called. He has five children and 11 grandchildren, and is a member of Faith Baptist Church in Saltillo.

Approximately 150 volunteers work in clinical areas, assist with patient and visitor comfort, and perform clerical duties throughout NMMC. For more information about volunteering at NMMC, call (662) 377-3131 or 1-800-THE DESK (1-800-843-3375), or stop by the Volunteer Services office in the hospital lobby between 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Information and a volunteer application are also available at www.nmhs.net/volunteer.