peter
“I was always a very independent fella going on about my life. Busy with work and I was heavily involved with the local golf club. I loved gardening and looking after my grandchildren… I never even though about getting old or being sick so when I got diagnosed with oesophageal cancer my whole world shifted. After waking up from the surgery, I remember the surgeon saying: ‘You’re going to be okay, Michael, but you won’t be playing the first team again!’ I didn’t know what he meant at the time, but it turned out that the surgery was so invasive I would never fully recover from it. Going through treatment was the first time I had to be looked after… I soon realised how lucky I was to have Anne, my wife, who was there with me at every treatment. She put her life on hold just to be with me. We got tremendous support from family and friends and I never felt alone… In waiting rooms, I met loads of other patients and saw that not everyone was as lucky as me. After I retired, I was looking for ways to give back. I started to actively look into ways of donating my extra free time. I had my ICS monthly donations set up for years, but after I heard of the volunteer driver opportunity, I thought ‘this would be just perfect for me’. I’m doing it for a good while now, the other day, I was taking a nurse to chemo. She was in her late thirties, a single mother of two young children… for me, it’s a no brainer. I just have to drive and sit in a coffee shop for a few hours, but it meant so much to her… And to me too! I mean, I’ve never done anything as rewarding and fulfilling as this job.”
Irish Cancer Society Volunteer Driver Service helped 1,500 people get to their chemotherapy appointments last year – ensuring patients reached over 12,000 lifesaving treatment sessions. This is one of the services that donations on #Daffodilday help to fund.
Please help people affected by cancer by buying a daffodil on the day or donating at www.cancer.ie/daffodilday