By Matthew Sims
At 84 years of age, Palliative Care South East (PCSE) volunteer Gwen Clough said she has no plans of stopping.
The Hampton Park local has been volunteering providing palliative care and other end-of-life support since 2003.
“To me, it is an honour and a privilege to be a PCSE volunteer,” she said.
“The way I see it, I’m giving a little bit of my time to someone who is running out of time and improving their quality of life.
“Who wouldn’t want to do that?”
Mrs Clough said she helped people with a life-limiting illness make the most of their remaining time.
“I remind them they are still living and help them continue to do things they enjoy like shopping or going out for lunch, engaging in conversation about life, love and the world,” she said.
“There have been times when I have cried with them, even laughed with them.
“I think the most important thing to remember is not to treat them differently because they are dying.
“They are still alive and they need to be respected.”
Mrs Clough said she though palliative care would have been helpful following the loss of her two husbands 36 years ago and 28 years ago respectively.
“I’m not afraid of death as I’ve travelled this road before,” she said.
“The first time was the fear of the unknown, the second time was the fear of the known.
“I was very lucky to have had the support of a loving family and some very good friends.
“I doubt that I would’ve got through it without them.”
Mrs Clough said it was never too late to start volunteering.
“Give it a go,” she said.
“It is amazing how many people appreciated the support of palliative care.
“Being a palliative care volunteer has been the most rewarding volunteering I have done in my almost 60 years of volunteering.”
For more information about how to volunteer at PCSE, visit palliativecaresoutheast.org.au.
Mrs Clough is also in the running for the Westfield Local Heroes competition, with the finalist with the most community votes set to receive a $20,000 grant for the organisation they represent.
Voting closes on Monday 11 September.
For more information, visit www.westfield.com.au/fountaingate.
