Richard Haines, extraordinary volunteer

I recently described a volunteer recognition luncheon that I was invited to by one of the honorees. Seems like it should have been the other way around but, as you'll soon see, that is just one of the many things that sets Richard off as special.

Richard was being honored in the category of "Service to Seniors" but he could just as easily received his accolades in

• Supporting Health Care
• Helping Those Less Fortunate
• Volunteer Coordinator of the Year
• Heart of Gold
• Problem Solver
• Ray of Light

Six years ago Richard applied to be one of the Sacramento Area's drivers for Meals on Wheels. Right away he was recognized for doing things far above the call of duty such as fixing minor appliances and lamps or even installing doorbells. He wasn't just a driver to the people on his route. He was a friend, a handyman, human contact of the best kind.

Richard also noticed that while some drivers seemed to feel comfortable finding their own replacements for temporary absences, other drivers did not. And work loads being what they are, paid staff often were not able to find coverage. With an engineer's precision and a scientist's curiosity and a computer geek's programming talent, Richard attacked the problem. He designed coverage reporting sheets that highlighted exactly where potential gaps existed then began calling drivers who had indicated they could cover other days where necessary. When that ran dry, Richard would often fill in himself. He filled in intentionally on every route every couple of months so that he could keep in touch with recipients and they could see him as the embodiment of program continuity.

Some drivers took umbrage at Richard's system but he never acted as if he had any more authority than he did. His calls were always courteous and polite. His suggestions clearly just suggestions. He took on the scheduling for more and more routes until he covered the entire east side of the county.

Not content with just putting in his time, Richard doesn't appear to have any time limits and many weeks works (make that volunteers) over 40 hours. But that doesn't mean that he is pushing himself for political or any other aim. He just wants to make sure that he does whatever he can to make the Meals on Wheels in Sacramento be the best program he can make it.

If they had a category of Volunteer IDOL, I would nominate Richard