South Georgia Medical Center welcomed 34 youth volunteers to its annual summer program, Canopy of Care. Participants are students between the ages of 14 and 17 whose responsibilities vary from patient care/interaction, administrative support, to surgical and outpatient services support.
 
“The influence that our Canopy of Care initiative has on the participating teens in our community is powerful,” says Jessica McKinney, SGMC Director of Patient Relations and Volunteer Services.
 
According to McKinney, many students commit their 7-8 weeks of summer vacation with no expectations of a set outcome. But after their volunteer experience, they are more confident and have successfully embraced the basics of working in a team environment. Additionally, they own and understand the meaning of accountability and responsibility.
 
“The participants recognize the importance of community, and more importantly, they have established relationships through a priceless experience that they just can’t get anywhere else,” McKinney continued. “The experience is what we pride ourselves on offering these students who will potentially be our future talent.”
 
Students submitted applications and interviews were held to select participants and match them with their areas of interest throughout the SGMC enterprise.
 
SGMC welcomes the following participants: Annalee Bickers, Emily Branch, Lacey Brown, Tucker Browning, Madeline Castor, Emily Clifton, Kahli Crews, Justin Echeverria, Cardale Evans, Chrislyn Evans, John Fox, Priyanka Gupta, Shelby Hall, Brennan Hulett, Lily James, Maraynna Jenkins, Elizabeth Kacprzyk, Erin Kelly, Lamees Khalil, Nhi Le-Bui, Olivia Lee, Aiyanna Manning, Jocelyn Neal, Kessiny Neal, Aneri Patel, Gopi Patel, Kathy Patel, Omni Patel, Meaghan Roberts, Katie Strickland, Lindsey Strickland, Stephanie Strickland, Faith Velez-Anderson, and Mitchell Yeager.