PHOENIX - You can count on Barney Albert to be at the Carl T. Hayden Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center at least four days a week, making coffee for veterans, buying them donuts or muffins out of his own pocket, and just talking with them to help answer questions or pass the time as they wait for their medical appointments.
After all, having served in the Army during the Vietnam era, he is one of them. While serving with the Army in Germany, an explosion took the sight in his right eye. He is legally blind and, although he doesn't live far away, he has to ride a bus two to three hours a day to volunteer at the VA Medical Center.
On many days, he talks with veterans who are losing or have recently lost their sight about how VA can help them lead normal lives by using assistive devices and rehabilitation training to help improve their confidence. He also calls veterans who have been in VA's rehabilitation program for awhile to find out if there is anything they need. Sometimes he just spends time with veterans, visually impaired or not, letting them know that he's there to help.
"I like helping people, and it works out really well," says Albert. "I've seen a lot of hurt people (in the clinics); sometimes they don't have anybody, so you just sit down with them and talk."
Lauren Stivison, his supervisor who nominated him for the VA Volunteer of the Year honor, says the trust that other veterans and employees have for Albert is amazing.
"Veterans trust Barney because he has first-hand knowledge about blindness and the benefits of certain procedures and programs," says Stivison. "He has always shown the utmost respect for veterans and employees."
Albert is one of about 1,000 people who volunteer their time to the Phoenix VA Health Care System, logging nearly 150,000 hours each year.
"We could not do what we do without each and every one of them," says Sheila Beran-Parker, Voluntary Service Specialist. "I believe in angels, and I count our volunteers as angels."
Besides spending his own money to help make veterans as comfortable as possible while at the VA Medical Center, he shares his experience as a blind veteran who has benefited from top-notch VA health care and rehabilitation programs offered by the facility. He had a cornea transplant about a year ago, which has given him back some of his sight. He also received rehab services through the VA Southwestern Blind Rehabilitation Center, a Tucson-based, world-class VA inpatient program for visually impaired veterans. He also receives VA outpatient treatment and rehabilitation services.
In earning this honor, Barney Albert was recognized at the annual VA Volunteer Awards Luncheon and was presented with a lovely plaque and additional recognition.
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Media Note: To arrange for photos and an interview with Barney Albert, contact Paula Pedene APR, Public Affairs Officer for the Carl T. Hayden VA Medical Center, at (602) 200-6279 or via e-mail at paula.pedene@va.gov.
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