John Kuhn spends his life in retirement giving back to the community through volunteer work.
Kuhn, who is the first male president of the Hospital Auxiliaries of Kansas, volunteers in many capacities along with his wife, Carolyn. John Kuhn was elected in November to a one-year term as president of the Hospital Auxiliaries of Kansas. As president of the auxiliary, Kuhn’s theme for 2009 is “Pedaling Together, Staying on Course ... Let’s Go Cycling.” Kuhn and his wife also own a bicycle museum, hence the theme.
Kuhn, who is one of 17 children, learned the importance of volunteering through his mother. He grew up on a farm in Western Kansas during the Dust Bowl days. In the 1940s, there were 19 people in his family.
“We were a poor family,” he said.
It was the summer when Kuhn was 10 years old that he found out the true meaning of volunteering. Kuhn went to work for Mr. and Mrs. Callahan, who had no children. He decided if he could make money on that job he could buy things with his money at the end of the summer. These things included a dress for his mother, B-B-Bats candy for his brothers and sisters, shoes for himself, ice cream cones for everybody who went to town — and the right to sit in the pew at church closest to the altar.
Kuhn said the Catholic church he went to at that time allowed people to buy a pew to sit in to raise money for the church. His family was poor and had to sit in the outside pews. He also wanted to buy a gravestone for his brother, who died in an accident.
When he got home at the end of the summer he asked his mother where the money was. His mother put her arm around him and said there was no pay, it was volunteer work. Kuhn said he cried because he didn’t understand what that meant.
In 1942, there were still 13 children at home. A car pulled up in the driveway and a man got out and asked for Kuhn. The Callahans had been killed in a car wreck. Before their death, they had named Kuhn in their will. The man handed Kuhn an envelope that contained a $5,000 check. The family was able to buy all the things that Kuhn wanted — even two center pews at church.
That life lesson led Kuhn to where he is today.
The Hospital Auxiliaries of Kansas was established 56 years ago, Kuhn said. Newman Regional Health’s auxiliary has 20 men who volunteer and 235 women.
There are 56 hospitals in the Hospital Auxiliaries of Kansas. As president of the organization, Kuhn goes around and visits each hospital and helps them establish volunteers and ideas for fundraising. He also will attend each of the six district meetings in the spring.
The average hospital auxiliary volunteer is 71 years old, Kuhn said. Last year, volunteers at each of the hospitals raised $1.85 million. With that money, the organization provided $1 million in hospital equipment that wasn’t in the hospitals’ budgets, such as a towel warmer for patients who are about to go into surgery. The group provided another $400,000 in nursing school scholarships. The group also put in almost 800,000 volunteer service hours to hospitals.
“At $10 an hour, that’s over $8 million,” Kuhn said.
Kuhn has several goals during his tenure as president of the auxiliary. He hopes to get younger people involved in hospital volunteerism.
“You never know when you recruit these young people,” Kuhn said. “They could be a pharmacist, a doctor ...”
Kuhn also wants to recruit more men to volunteer as well as get more hospitals in Kansas on board with the auxiliary.
Kuhn said he is looking forward to his role in the auxiliary.
“It’s going to be a fun year,” he said. “There’s 16 women and one guy. I really get along with the women. I think they have respect for me being the first man.”
Kuhn said hospital volunteers fill many roles and are a vital part of the hospital.
“The first person you see when you walk into the hospital is a volunteer sitting at the desk,” Kuhn said. “This is what it is all about when you volunteer. The different things you can do to make life better.”
Carolyn Kuhn also works with Newman’s hospital auxiliary.
“This unit here is a strong unit,” she said. “I think it’s really important. This hospital is very supportive of the volunteers and the Kansas Hospital Association is very supportive.”
Newman’s auxiliary does several fundraising events throughout the year to raise money. These include the Angel Tree, the hospital’s gift shop, snack bar, bake sales, book fair and jewelry fair.
“A number of auxiliary members bring in baked goods for the snack bar,” Carolyn Kuhn said.
Kuhn and his wife also volunteer in several other capacities, including the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve. Carolyn Kuhn volunteers at the William Allen White House State Historic Site as well. Other activities of John Kuhn’s include serving as a rural water board member, past Kiwanis president, National Teacher’s Hall of Fame, Emporia Area Retired School Personnel, Antique Car Club and a Republican precinct committeeman.
In a group effort, Kuhn, along with several other people, bought the Kansas Christian Board Home in Newton out of bankruptcy. The home has 93 beds and 64 independent units. The residents didn’t have to move out because of the buyout, Kuhn said. The home takes care of people who don’t have money, Kuhn said.
• The Newman Hospital Auxiliary is always accepting new volunteers. To sign up, contact Janet Haag at Newman at 343-6800, Ext. 2525.
admireed (anonymous) says...
Thanks J & C for all you have done for the community. Remember when you started the Hornet Club.
December 10, 2008 at 1:22 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )