Battle Creek VA Wraps Up 2024 Summer Serve
Twelve students from local area high schools concluded the 2024 Summer Serve Program at the Battle Creek VA Medical Center in Battle Creek, Michigan, following a celebratory luncheon on August 8th.
The Department of Veteran's Affairs Student Volunteer Program connects young people with opportunities to honor veterans through volunteer service at local VA medical centers. The young volunteers had the opportunity to learn new skills and explore careers in the medical field.
“Veterans benefit from the energy and enthusiasm that these students bring with them every day,” said Joe Devyak, Battle Creek VA Medical Center Voluntary Service Specialist, and Summer Serve Program Lead. “They connect in ways that are helpful to their Whole Health experience by sharing stories, playing games, and engaging in recreational activities. Many of our Veterans look forward to seeing the students throughout the summer.”
One of the earliest events the students participated in was tie dye event they shared with Veterans at the medical center, which resemble the shirts the students wore during the days they served at the facility.
“That was a special moment the students really enjoyed and shared with some of our Veterans as well as escorting them to the Canteen to shop and around campus,” said Devyak.
This summer, students got hands-on experience in a variety of areas, learned about careers in health care from VA providers and performed tasks to benefit the hospital. This included spending time with residents of the Community Living Center (CLC).
“There’s a Veteran there who is very sweet, and he was talking to me about some really cool experiences about his life, especially cars and the things he grew up with, the life he went through,” said Rachael Joseph, a second-year volunteer and who is a dual enrolled Senior at Gull Lake High School and at Kalamazoo Valley Community College. “It was really cool to hang out with him for a while and hear these different stories, and that made it very a personal experience.”
There are nearly 80 Veteran residents at the CLC, many of whom do not always receive many guests on a regular basis. CLC residents also have a wide range of mobile and cognitive abilities where the volunteers could assist with wheelchair bound Veterans getting outside to enjoy their day a little more.
“Giving Veterans who are living in the Community Living Center here someone new to talk to that’s from outside the medical center is something I’ll remember, especially as some of them don’t always have family members nearby to visit them, and connecting with them has been a really valuable experience for me, and I hope for them too,” said Quinn Hague, who is another Summer Serve returnee and who is a dual enrolled Senior at Portage Central High School and at Kalamazoo Area Math and Science Center.
It also provided them with a chance to learn about different potential career fields that the Veteran Healthcare system employs to take care of the Nations prior service community. Students visited both the Recreational Arts Therapy painting area, played music with Veterans in on stage in the auditorium, visited the sterilization department, and the facility’s Learning Resource Center to name a few.
“Incorporating events for the students to engage with our staff and clinicians is something the students have really responded to because they’re eager to learn and better understand what it means to care for the Veterans we are serving here,” said Devyak.
During their visit to the Blind and Low Vision Rehabilitation service they were able to learn about equipment utilized for diagnosis and were then challenged to navigate around with wearing modified goggles to simulate different variations of vision loss.
“I really like the optometry field and it gave me a chance to get a lot of information that I would have maybe got second-hand from my school counselor, and it was nice to talk with actual optometrists,” said Joseph, who is considering that as a career path along with nursing.
By the end of the program the students volunteered for 15 sessions and sharing time with a wide range of the Veteran population. As the program continues to progress, future Summer Serve students will also receive education in different clinical practices as well.
“This season has been great, and I can tell that the students enjoyed meeting folks here at Battle Creek VA, and other students from different schools,” said Devyak. “More importantly though, I can tell they learned a lot and will be taking their experiences with them back into their schools and communities.”
If you are interested in volunteering or would like more information about volunteering, contact the Community and Volunteer Service staff at the address or phone number below:
Battle Creek VA Medical Center
Community and Volunteer Service
5500 Armstrong Rd
Battle Creek, MI 49037
269-223-5497