Giving His All for Others

You would be hard pressed to find someone who connects with others more naturally than GBMC Volunteer Pat King. It's both his gift and the fuel that energizes him. 

These days, as he shifts from Wound Care to Lymphedema treatment at GBMC, Pat is missing his day job and the many ways that, in his 12 years as a volunteer, he has been able to help others. Naturally, he's bored. More than that, he misses being with people. 

Nancy King was treated for breast cancer at GBMC's Sandra & Malcolm Berman Cancer Institute, where her husband has most recently volunteered at the Welcome/Information desk. In addition to giving his time, Pat made a contribution to the Sandra R. Berman Pavilion capital campaign to help pay for Infusion chairs. In honor of his generosity, Nancy's name is listed on a plaque in the Infusion Center. 

"As long as I can, I will give," he says. Over the years, his philanthropy has been directed to several GBMC HealthCare programs that he has come to appreciate deeply, including Oncology Support Services, the Sexual Assault Forensic Examination & Domestic Violence (SAFE & DV) program, and Pediatrics. 

"I'm not rich," he says, "but I'm not poor. If I can do something, I will." 

Pat was retired when Nancy passed away 13 years ago. Having been by her side, attending to her care, losing her felt a little like losing his way. "I stumbled around for about a year," he recalls. And then he began volunteering at GBMC. He'd spent so much time in the Infusion Center, he thought of volunteering there. 

However, his financial acumen and some retail experience made The Corner Shop a better fit. He began behind the cash register and before long became a key member of the volunteer team. 

"I look at the Corner Shop as a business that has to be maintained," more than as a volunteer post, he says. 

After the Berman Pavilion opened, he began a volunteer position there. "I like to see couples coming in," he says. He shares what he learned from his days accompanying Nancy to the Berman Cancer Institute, "From now on, she's in charge," he sometimes tells husbands he meets. In true GBMC fashion, Pat advises them that the patient comes first. 

As much as he misses being in the Allan Parsons Atrium, helping patients and caregivers. Pat is surrounded by family. His two sons and their children live nearby, though both grandkids are now college students who are not in the area during the school year. 

Pat enjoys close relationships with his grandchildren. Katherine and Owen King are both outstanding student athletes who know their grandfather is on the sidelines cheering for them whenever he can be here – and watching the game via livestream when he can't. He is an immensely proud father and grandfather. 

Pat King is also proud of his work at GBMC. Like many who have seen them in action, he has a deep appreciation for nurses. His time as a Wound Care Center patient has left him grateful for that team's dedication to those in their care. And he is confident he'll find the same to be true of the Lymphedema team. 

He is impatient, though, to get back to volunteering. "I enjoy helping people." 

"When you're a volunteer," he says, "A lot of times people just want to talk. They want someone who will listen." 

And they can count on Pat King for that.