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Walking into a hospital can be a nerve-wracking experience. Whether as a patient or a visitor, it is likely that you are there for a health concern.
Hospital volunteers like Stella Folse, who serves as president of Thibodaux Regional Medical Center Auxiliary, work to ensure each visitor’s time at the hospital is as stress free as possible from the time he or she arrives.
“When I first came on at Thibodaux Regional 13 years ago, I worked at the Medical Mall desk and helped to direct patients to where they needed to go in the hospital,” Folse said. “Now I help clerks put patient packets together.”
A native of Wallace, Louisiana, just outside of Vacherie, Folse moved to Thibodaux over 40 years ago when her husband, a county executive director for the Department of Agriculture, accepted a position in Lafourche Parish. She had been working as a program assistant at the St. John the Baptist Parish office, where the two met.
“He became my boss,” Folse said. “When the opening came up in Lafourche, we moved to Thibodaux and I continued commuting to St. John.”
After the couple married and had their first child, Folse became a stay-at-home mom, a job that would later open up opportunities for volunteer work.
“Once the kids started school, I joined a homemakers club,” Folse said. “It was similar to 4-H, and we would put on educational programs at local elementary schools and nursing homes. Back at that time, we learned things like canning, freezing and food safety.”
For years, Folse suggested to her family that she would like to extend her volunteer service by helping out at Thibodaux Regional. Encouraged by her daughter, who works in human resources for the hospital, Folse joined the auxiliary team and has been greeting visitors with a smile ever since.
“The other day, a lady came in looking for the Women’s Center. She hadn’t seen the signs and looked confused, so I was able to show her the way,” Folse said. “It felt rewarding to be able to do something to help.”
Folse receives many requests from patients asking for help to locate testing areas. She volunteers as often as she can, usually a few hours in the afternoon every other week. When not at Thibodaux Regional, she is caring for her husband who suffers from a walking disability.
“My husband was born with a birth injury that affected his legs and ability to walk,” Folse said. “He started walking with a slight limp, then needed a cane, and now gets around in a motorized wheelchair. When he needs to get somewhere, I am there to help and bring him.”
It is the calling for helping others that drives Folse and Thibodaux Regional’s team of 40 volunteers to care for their fellow community members at the hospital. The team is like a family, and they are always looking to expand.
“I’m proud to be a volunteer at Thibodaux Regional because it is a tremendous facility,” Folse said. “It is rewarding to meet the patients and be a part of their experience.”
