Training the next generation

Lutheran Volunteer Corps member Hannah Wright reflects on her year as a Spanish Medical Interpreter

Q: Lutheran Volunteer Corps (LVC) and Health Care for the Homeless have a long partnership.
Yes, President & CEO Kevin Lindamood started as an LVC volunteer 26 years ago! LVC is turning 40 this year, so for more than half that time Health Care for the Homeless has hosted volunteers like me.

Q: You’re from Illinois. Why did you choose to volunteer in Maryland?
I worked at a free clinic in college, where we helped people with things like antibiotics for infections and prenatal visits, but we couldn’t address the root of their problem, which was often unstable housing. I was drawn to Health Care for the Homeless because it tackles both health care and housing as barriers to well-being.

Q: What have you learned from this volunteer year?
Our clients are some of the most patient people you’ll ever meet. They wait weeks to see a specialist because they’re uninsured or underinsured. They wait years to get housing vouchers. Clients being patient and their willingness to accept help (both hard things to do) have taught me to keep a cool head and ask for help when I need it.

Q: What’s next for you?
I’m applying to medical school! I think that the on-the-ground experience of caring for people builds the best leaders, which I hope to be some day.
 

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