Voices of Esperanza: Russell Elliott

Finding Joy in Volunteering at Esperanza

Several years ago, as Philadelphia resident Russell Elliott was nearing retirement from his career as a medical social worker, he decided to enroll in Spanish lessons at a local language school. As it turned out, one of Russell’s classmates was Susan Post, Esperanza’s executive director. Russell hadn’t heard of Esperanza before, and he was intrigued to learn about it and the North Philadelphia community from speaking with Susan.

Russell had also started to think about potential opportunities to volunteer. He decided to visit Esperanza’s website one day, and noticed the site’s page on volunteering. Says Russell: “When I read about volunteering at Esperanza, I told myself, ‘I don’t know whether this is a coincidence, but I wonder whether I’m being led in a certain direction?'” In 2014, Russell began to volunteer regularly at Esperanza, coming in two days each week, and since then he’s served in many different ways, always willing to help wherever he’s needed—whether it’s data entry, filing records, volunteering with Esperanza’s “Young at Heart” Seniors program, processing mailings, or interviewing patients for the annual patient satisfaction survey. Says Russell: “The patients were very, very patient with my terrible Spanish, but we managed to stumble through together!” Russell notes that volunteering at Esperanza has encouraged him to become more involved in serving with local outreach ministries at his church.

Every Tuesday morning, when the Young at Heart group gathers at our Hunting Park site, Russell plays a key role in coordinating each meeting. Not long ago, Esperanza’s chaplain, Rev. Andres Fajardo asked Russell if he could interview a member of the group who was dying of cancer, so that she could pass down her life story to her family. For several weeks, she and Russell met regularly in Esperanza’s prayer room, and Russell transcribed each day’s meeting. Eventually, the interviews turned into about 40 pages of material! It was a real blessing for him to have had the opportunity to help share her story. “Volunteering at Esperanza is a gift to me. I come here twice a week, and I get swept up in the energy…there’s a lot of positive energy around here,” says Russell. “Anything that I can do to help brings me great satisfaction, because it’s a real privilege to serve at Esperanza!”

Kensington Health Center – Construction Update

The team at Target Building Construction continues on pace to complete the development of our new Kensington Health Center (photo above, L) with planned opening by early summer 2019, and our new parking structure (photo above, R), which is being built adjacent to the new site and is also scheduled to open later this summer.

Come Join the EHC Team!

We’re seeking qualified, professional individuals to join us in advancing our mission, with many current openings in clinical and non-clinical positions. Please click below to learn about current job opportunities at Esperanza, which are updated regularly, and to apply online:

Current Job Opportunities at Esperanza

We are also looking for people to volunteer—we have a current need for an administrative volunteer in the medical department at our Hunting Park site. Please visit our website’s Volunteering page and contact Karen Norris, Volunteer Coordinator at karen.norris@esperanzahealth.com if you are interested in this or other volunteer opportunities at Esperanza.