Serving Our Seniors Magazine April - June 2025

Dave Opper, 77, a retired carpenter, began volunteering because he was bored. The volunteer experience keeps him coming back. “I get satisfaction out of working with the other volunteers and seeing the results.” Judy Hippler, age 82, is in her 21st year of volunteering. She was inspired to volunteer for Habitat for Humanity, after she and her husband updated their home. “I love carpentry and I ran out of things to do in retirement. I thought of Habitat for Humanity.” Judy is the first female to volunteer for Firelands Habitat for Humanity. Sandy Zittner, 74, is a retired Monroeville School Principal. She has been volunteering for 20 years. She is the second female to start volunteering for Firelands Habitat for Humanity. She recalled the day she first walked onto the job site, feeling apprehensive, because she knew nothing about construction. Judy took Sandy under her wing. “I remember the Job Coordinator introducing himself to me and telling what he needed to get done. He said, ‘Well you can take the boards and put top plates on these, and then...’ ” And rattled off several other tasks for Sandy to do. Sandy said, “It went in one ear and out the other. I looked at Judy and said, ‘What the heck did he just say?’ Judy laughed and replied, ‘Don’t worry about it. I’ll show you.’ ” Bob Rody, retired from Playhouse Square Foundation. He said, “I have had friends who retired and they didn’t have a plan for what they would do in retirement. I saw that 10 or 12 months later, they were gone. So, after I retired, I started volunteering at the ReStore.” Bob’s first memory of volunteering was receiving the donation of 25 sections of carpet from a hotel. “There was a lot of good carpet. Mike McCall was the director, at that time. Together we laid out and cut five sections of carpet. We rolled it up and labeled it. After five sections, Mike said, ‘I have to go to the office.’ He never came back that day. I ended up doing the other 20 pieces of carpet by myself,” he said as he laughed. Bob pointed out, “Volunteering here involves some mental gymnastics. When measuring, subtracting, figuring out distances and working with angles you have to really think. Then there is the sequence of events. When you are building something, the sequence of what you do also has to be considered.” As Bob sees it, volunteering here gives what he calls, “The total package.” Rick Bressler, 69, started volunteering while he was still working. Rick has recently retired and is now part of the construction crew. “I love the comradery and the type of work we are doing.” Doug Dellisanti, 74, started volunteering after he donated around 60 door knobs to the ReStore. While there, he filled out a form for volunteering. “My skills are nominal. These guys know way more than I do. I learn a lot from them. When others ask me, ‘Why do you do this?’ I tell them I get more out of it, than I put into it.” Mark Boggs, 74, was a home builder. When he retired, he told his wife, “I am going to build a house just for fun.” He volunteered for a year and was offered the paid position of Construction Coordinator in 2018. “I know guys who like to fish or play golf. I’m one who just likes to build a house. To me, it’s great fun. After I started here, the friendships that have developed between us… Well, let me say it this way…. I’m going to be here until I die, in some way or another.” I asked the group, if a reader is thinking they might like to try volunteering for Firelands Habitat for Humanity, what do you want them to know? Judy Hippler, “You don’t have to be Oprah to make a difference. Each one of us makes a difference for the families who live in the houses we build. It changes their lives and the lives of their children.” for Aging Well in Later Life By Sue Daugherty continued 21