Monday, September 12, 2016

The City of St. John's Volunteers: Ruby Hann

Ruby Hann with her Volunteer Award. Photo taken by Terra Barrett.

Ruby Hann was born and raisedin downtown St. John’s. She is a mother of three and a proud grandmother of many.

Ruby began volunteering at the Miller Center at the Senior’s Resource Center when she retired about thirty years ago. She has always had a great deal of respect for seniors.

One woman in particular has been an inspiration for Ruby: Ivy, another senior volunteer, who had a massive stroke which left her paralyzed on one side and unable to speak. According to Ruby, Ivy came back to the Senior’s Resource Center dances and began learning to speak again.

When Ruby is at home, her door is always open. “They know here if my door is closed I’m either gone out, or I’m having a shower, or I’m having a nap.” She is well-known at Kenny’s Park Apartments, where she has sometimes been mistaken for the building superintendent because of her helpful nature and involvement with the community.

As for aging, Ruby embraces her life as an older person: “I’m a very happy senior, and I’m very proud that I’m a senior, actually. People say ‘how old are you?’ and I say ‘I’m eighty!’ Ah! ‘You’re not eighty!’ Yes I am, unless they made a mistake on my birth certificate! But that’s me.”

“I feel for other people - differently. You know, I have always sympathized with people but now I can see. Me being a senior, I can see.”

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