Judy Nocera, who is being recognized as the 2025 New York State Senior Citizen of the Year for Schenectady County, has volunteered almost all her life, beginning with volunteering for WMHT because her son loved their children’s programs.
“My first formal volunteer opportunity was being a go getter for their auction, which was several years ago, but that's really what started it all, and I just enjoyed being a part of the community, helping organizations fulfill their mission, and just meeting a lot of wonderful people.”
Nocera is the president of the Sunnyview Hospital Auxiliary, which is a volunteer organization that supports a variety of the hospital’s administrative services and programs. She volunteers for their gift shop, and has also been a board member for the Schenectady City Schools Educational Foundation, the Salvation Army, and the Samaritan Counseling Center. She spoke about her work with Sunnyview and what it means to her.
”The Gift Shop is the main source of income for our auxiliary and so it's been very rewarding. I love it. I love just being at Sunnyview. It's a great organization. They do wonderful things in the community.”
Janet Weick, who is being recognized as an Older New Yorker of the Year, is a musician and fitness and health instructor. She has worked professionally and as a volunteer at Union College and the YWCA, along with teaching classes at different churches in Schenectady and the Capital Region. Now retired, she contributes most of her time to teaching exercise classes and working with therapy dogs at Kingsway, an assisted living facility where she currently lives, and at various nursing homes in the area. She worked with a dog whose name was Lady, and told a story about how therapy dogs help people living in nursing homes.
“One man, he wasn't interested in the dogs, and he'd just lie there because he didn't like being in the nursing home. And we'd say, ‘Here comes Lady, here comes Lady, and he wouldn't do anything. So another day I walked in because I wanted him to start liking the people and the animals, because he wouldn't even pay attention and say, ‘Lady’s here to see you, and she loves to come’ and finally we left the room, and I heard ‘meow, meow.’ He was calling the dog to get the dog to come back to him. It was kind of nice. That made me feel that it was worth coming every time for him.”
Renee Markle, Director of Resident Engagement at Kingsway Community, nominated Weick for an award, and said that it is especially important for retirees to have an opportunity to find themselves through volunteer work.
“Usually, when people retire, they're trying to find themselves and through volunteer work that they've done throughout their lifetime, they already have a purpose, and it makes them feel good about what they're doing, and to be able to give back to a community that has supported them for so long, there's nothing like that kind of feeling.”
Volunteering is an important part of life for both Weick and Nocera, who encouraged others to volunteer, too.
“If somebody's retired, they just should get out and find an organization that really speaks to them and help them out, because everything they do is important,” Nocera said.
Weick said volunteering at any age is a great way to get to know people in your community.
“You can always learn through volunteer work: be interested in people and talk to them and see what they like and how they react to you, and if you can help them in any way.”
