Stories from the road

It should be no surprise that a doctor who spent his life helping people around the world would find joy in serving older adults in the Verde Valley.

After retiring from a life in pediatric medicine, Bob Ganelin found an outlet to help his community by volunteering with Verde Valley Caregivers Coalition. His calm demeanor that likely helped his former patients and coworkers stay cool under pressure now serves patients heading to-and-from doctor appointments.

As a volunteer, he enjoys listening to people’s stories and helping people whose biggest goal is to stay living in their community of choice.

“Many people just express that they want to remain at home and want to remain as independent as they can,” Bob said. “Some people have just been astounded at the service that Verde Valley Caregivers Coalition provides.”

VVCC has more than 100 active volunteers to serve 3,900 clients, but more drivers are always needed. Our volunteers decide when, where, and how often they can volunteer. 

When he signed up almost two years ago, Bob asked to only drive within the Verde Valley. More than 150 trips later, Bob has enjoyed the many opportunities to serve without ever being too far from home. 

“The people are just so appreciative of it, and they really need it,” Bob said.

After moving from Pennsylvania to college, he eventually graduated from Johns Hopkins Medical School. He first came to Arizona after being drafted into the U.S. Public Health Service.

After that, he describes his career as “checkered” as he jumped between governmental health research programs, teaching at Maricopa County General Hospital, and private practices all in Arizona. But the common thread throughout his career is his pediatric medicine specialty.

“I especially enjoyed the teaching and the training,” Bob said. “I liked helping people learn to think about medicine, the Socratic method of asking questions.”

As his expertise grew and his work strayed from bedside to administrative, Bob felt a drive for change. His drive was so strong it eventually landed him in the Middle East. In 1984, Bob and his wife moved to Qatar and later Saudia Arabia to work with the countries’ pediatric training programs.

“I heard about this opportunity in Qatar, and it sounded very interesting,” Bob said. “I only intended to go for two years, but it ended up being nine.”

He and his wife were quickly exposed to living in a new culture, food, country, and populace. While Bob lived there during the 80s, Qatar’s population was around 240,000 people who were mostly from other countries. Now Qatar has a population of 2.7 million people with an unmistakable skyscraper skyline.

“You’ve probably seen pictures of Qatar now,” Bob said. “When I was there, there was one, nine-story hotel which was the only high-rise in the country.”

After moving back stateside in 1993, he worked in the pediatric emergency room until he retired at 85. Now volunteering in Sedona, he’s happy to do as much as he can for the neighbors in his community. Ask him about VVCC, and he might try to get you to sign up to volunteer.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity to help people who need help,” Bob said.

 VVCC Volunteer Annie feels thankful for her time before retirement, working at a hospital in Idaho.

She said it wasn’t the pay that kept her there. It was the staff dedicated to helping people and the little ways they made patients more comfortable. It was the culture of caring.

When she started volunteering at Verde Valley Caregivers Coalition in retirement, she recognized that feeling right away. 

“It feels good to belong to a group with that common goal, mainly just to be kind,” Annie said. “I know everybody at VVCC cares. I’ve heard it in their voice — in the things they’ve said. So many neighbors comment on how wonderful their drivers have been.”

Annie found her way to the Verde Valley when moving in with her longtime friend (and because Sun City, Arizona was too hot.) She has been a volunteer driver with VVCC for a little more than a year. 

She loves the flexible schedule and the ability to choose where she drives. Along the way, her greatest joy has been hearing stories from neighbors while exploring streets and neighborhoods around the valley.

“You learn quick. I’ve learned so much about the surrounding communities — Rimrock, Camp Verde, Cottonwood, Clarkdale, Cornville,” Annie said. “I’ve found all kinds of cool things there just by picking people up and taking them home.”

One man she recently transported needed to run an important errand at the bank, which ended up being more complicated of a trip than expected. Annie assisted the neighbor as best as she could, and helped the errand come to a neat solution. 

The man and his wife were so grateful, they sent a handwritten note to Verde Valley Caregivers.

“Annie is a wonderful girl!” the handwritten note said. “Very kind and helpful and caring! God Bless You All!

P.S. Annie is a very, very, very … excellent driver!”

Annie thought the letter was kind. In her mind, it fits in with the gratitude she regularly feels from neighbors. The older adults she meets along the way are some of her favorite parts of volunteering. 

“I just always felt like I never got to spend enough time with older adults when I was working as a nurse. There were just too many,” Annie said. “I just enjoy their stories and their manners.” 

At the end of the day, Annie believes the best way to show her gratitude for her happy life is to use her life to serve others. 

“It helps me as much as it helps them,” Annie said.

 Hello! My name is Scott Buffon. I'm a new hire at Verde Valley Caregivers Coalition, assisting with our fundraising and communications. My first Wednesday working with Verde Valley Caregivers Coalition started by meeting one of our drivers, a man named Miller Bizardi.

My meeting with Miller was likely similar to many of our VVCC Neighbor introductions to him. He stood near his silver, wheelchair-accessible van wearing shorts and a blue VVCC polo shirt. He kindly shook my hand and introduced himself. 

He told me about our route for the day, saying we would be driving all over the Cottonwood area taking people to their various appointments. As I would soon learn, VVCC’s seemingly small act of giving people a free ride to their appointments has a huge impact on Verde Valley elders.

And it was the people we met along the way, much like Miller, who had a huge impact on my first week at VVCC.

“They’re not just a client. They’re not just a number. They’re not just a name. No, they’re a neighbor,” Miller said. “They’re our neighbors. We’re here to serve them and take care of them.”

First up for the day was Mary. Her stories about water skiing, sun tanning, and boating around Lake Powell, Arizona summers ago invoked a feeling of better days. Then she also told us one story of her husband paying an Indycar driver $100 to drive her around the Las Vegas Strip in his Indycar that would make anyone jealous.

“The driver drove, and I rode,” Mary said. “Two laps around the Las Vegas Strip. It was so exciting.”

In between drop offs, I asked questions of Miller and learned more about what drove one of VVCC’s most accomplished drivers. 

He explained he was raised with a deep love for his grandparents. The two words he used to describe his relationship to them were simple and clear — respect and honor. It’s clear these elders had a large impact on him when he was younger in a way that still lingers today.

“No matter what nationality or ethnic group, I see an elderly person I feel drawn to them. I want to be there for them,” Miller said. “It’s just ingrained in me.”

Our next pick up was Janice. As a new Neighbor, it was her second ride with us. After signing up, she was thrilled to learn our drivers come to the door, especially after her recent fall and hand injury.

“I thought, what am I supposed to do? Hope I make it up there with one hand?” Janice said. “I never knew there was a ride you could take where somebody would come to your door. That’s super!”

After we dropped off Janice at her appointment, she had a simple request — “Just don’t forget me please!” 

Miller produced a business card with his name and number from his pocket to leave with Janice along with a simple affirmation: “Just call me when you’re done, and we’ll come by to pick you up.” 

Her appointment was shorter than expected, so we were waiting in the Cottonwood Public Library parking lot chatting about his daily duties when she called us back. 

And like we did before, we picked her up with our van and took her back to her apartment. She was waving and smiling at us from the safety of her couch when we left. 

Miller said this scene — a safe and satisfied Neighbor — is his goal. 

Oftentimes that means going beyond a simple ride, and sometimes changing a lightbulb or moving a heavy box. Sometimes he will help simply by explaining VVCC services. 

“They’re almost in tears because they’re trying to figure out how to pay a handyman,” Miller said. 

From pet care assistance, social outings, and emergency alert units, many people are grateful for our suite of services at no cost to neighbors. Every time he can help solve people’s concerns; Miller says they’re so thankful. He feels rewarded and blessed to be able to work with these folks and alleviate their worries.

“I don’t want to add any grief or anything. I just want to make it comforting for them, just to give them the best ride ever,” Miller said. “That makes my day, every week. Day in and day out.”

Later, we picked up a couple — Julie and Richard. 

Richard has mobility challenges, requiring the use of a wheelchair. He and his wife Julie have learned to adapt to these challenges, but some challenges require costly solutions. Before finding VVCC, she had to stop Richard’s physical therapy appointments because of its drain on their retirement. 

“I thought, ‘I can’t do this, Richard. I’m sorry, we just can’t afford that,’” Julie said, remembering their healthcare challenge. 

However, all it took was a coordinator at the hospital who recommended Julie and Richard to VVCC services, and the problem was solved. Julie said one of the greatest perks of VVCC is how she is allowed to travel in the van with Richard, who rides in his wheelchair, to each appointment. Like many partners who need complex healthcare, spouses often become the question-askers and note-takers at medical appointments. 

It’s been a little more than a year since signing up, and so far, VVCC has satisfied their needs.

“Richard hadn’t been out of the house in more than a year,” Julie said. 

Miller understands that by transporting the sick and elderly, there are possibilities that a ride with some folks might be his last time with them. And while this is sad, he tries not to dwell on it. Instead, he makes every ride valuable. 

“Every day, every chance I get, I try to treat them like they are royalty,” Miller said. “They are valuable. They have something to offer. They have knowledge. They have experiences.”

Because for him, he knows there will always be another neighbor who needs a ride. Another neighbor who needs a jar opened. Another neighbor who can live a better life with VVCC services. 

“It’s always about the other neighbors that keep me going,” Miller said.

And while my moment riding was Miller was done by that point, I knew the stories from Miller, Mary, Janice and more would keep me company on my daily commute home. 

And as Miller drove off to deliver a food box to a Verde Valley man, I couldn’t help but share some of his happiness as I had started to feel the rewards for giving.

Mary had a career in sales of home accessories. She lived in Silicon Valley and was on call to Memorex and Unisys. She has three adult children. Mary and her husband Edward retired to VOC 30 years ago. After a couple of years Mary grew tired of playing golf twice a week, Mary wanted to do something more. She learned about VVCC and volunteered. 

Mary spent 18 years as a volunteer in the VVCC office starting in the basement of the Church of the Red Rocks and moved with the office each time, finally working in the VVCC office Uptown. She was on the Board for a couple of years, has driven, provided respite and shopping services. Her late husband also volunteered providing respite services.

Here is what she has to say about her experience volunteering:

Over the nearly 18 years that I volunteered, I met many people who shared their interesting lives with me and became friends.  One "neighbor", as we refer to those we help, was a published poet, another a retired Lockheed Manager who accompanied the delivery of a plane to France and was "wined and dined" for a few days by the French, and another, formerly from Texas, was host to the wedding reception of a known radio commentator on her estate in Dallas.  As most Sedona residents are aware, we live in a diverse and talented community and you'll never know who you might meet when you respond to a call for help from VVCC.  When need becomes a factor in life, it doesn't matter who you are because you can always call VVCC for help.

Volunteering for "Caregivers" is so important for those in need of help in our community and extremely gratifying for the volunteer.  VVCC asks only that a volunteer commit any available time they might have to help another.  A few hours of a volunteer’s time can make someone’s life much easier.  

Now Mary is a client, herself. She has the loan of an emergency alert device. She has not requested transportation because she still drives herself and neighbors and friends volunteer to run errands for her. 

When asked if it occurred to her when she was volunteering that sometime she might need the service herself she said, “There were times that those of us in the office would say, ‘ that will be us someday’.”

Having seen VVCC from both sides, volunteer and client, she says VVCC has grown in different and positive ways. She credits current Director Kent Elsworth with guiding VVCC into the organization it is today. The Verde Vallley is “a very lucky community to have VVCC.” We have a caring community.

I recently had a vivid experience while transporting a neighbor named Rosemary to a doctor’s appointment and back to her apartment. Rosemary informed me that she needed to pick up her prescriptions, but the stop was not in my manifest. Looking at my schedule I realized that I had time to pick up the prescription between other neighbor transports. I asked her to call VVCC’s Call Center about the request and that I would gladly pick up the prescription.

When I arrived back to pick up Rosemary’s payment to purchase her prescriptions, I found Rosemary sitting in her chair with a blood pressure monitor on her wrist. It was obvious that she was in distress by the look on her face, and she asked me to please stay and sit down with her. She informed me that her blood pressure was not coming down and that had alarmed her, causing some anxiety. She had called the doctor’s office that I took her to that morning.

She shared her concerns about her blood pressure not coming down after her doctor’s visit that morning. She mentioned to them that I was there with her and I was to pick up prescriptions for her. The lady on the phone with Rosemary told her to have me go and get the prescriptions for her. So, making sure Rosemary would be okay before I left, I went to pick up her prescriptions. When I returned to Rosemary’s apartment, she was so glad to see me with her prescriptions in my hands. Rosemary asked if I would stay awhile with her. I saw she was still distressed. But I had another neighbor to take grocery shopping. I called the neighbor to let him know that I would be delayed due to an unexpected incident. He gladly consented. He told me he was in no hurry and to take as much time as I needed. Now with time to comfort Rosemary, she began to share about how she dealt with anxiety that brought on fear of the worst. I asked Rosemary if there was anyone that I could call for her, like a family member, a friend or neighbor. Rosemary said she had no one, no one in her life to call. I began to turn my attention to the anxiety that she was experiencing at that time. I continued by sharing my past experiences with anxiety and how my faith helped me.

Rosemary asked if I would pray with her. I did and before I left, I knew Rosemary and I were at peace and content. I assured her that she was going to be fine and I knew that spending that extra time with Rosemary and the conversation we had changed both of us for the good: for her, a compassionate act from a service provider brought peace and comfort; for me, a reminder and a resurgence of the desire in my heart to provide assistance and care for the elderly, which brought me to work for Verde Valley Caregivers. 

It is rewarding and an accomplishment to partner with the men and women associated with VVCC. We become the comfort, the family member, neighbor, son or daughter, the hands, the feet, legs, and voice for our elderly community members of the Verde Valley. As a service provider with this wonderful institution, we provide, present, and extend the benefits, aims and values of the Verde Valley Caregivers’ mission statement. I have been told on many occasions by our neighbors, that VVCC is a God send.