The Bloom Project

This past summer, in the name of volunteering for http://thebloomproject.org, I traveled to many breathtaking Central Oregon wedding venues to collect the thoughtfully donated wedding flowers of socially and environmentally conscious brides and grooms who weren't too busy with endless details to think of ensuring that the special flowers that graced their momentous day would be lovingly repurposed, reused and rearranged into born again bedside bouquets for nearby hospice and palliative care patients and their families. Yes, this is a thing. This is happening! And The Bloom Project exists so that it will continue to happen.

Following these joyous occasions, in the name of giving, I got to throw open grand doors and walk into spaces still full of beauty and life and gather up vases full of perfumed petals for the purpose of brightening a dark period for a person unknown to me and in doing so my own spirit was so buoyed that I did this again, and again and again.

Giving can fill like getting, and this is how you know you found the sweet spot. That moment when in doing for someone else, something is done for you and it feels so good you just can't stop. You find ways to do it more. You tell others how to do it too. You can't believe there was a time you didn't do it. You can't imagine a time when you won't do it. It's the sweet spot. It's a great place to be. You have one too. Wherever yours is, in the name of expressivity, humility, humanity and unity, I hope you find it soon.

As a volunteer for The Bloom Project/Portland, I really feel like Cinderella at the Ball! This “glass slipper” just fits!

My husband and I moved to Portland 8 years ago from L.A. after we retired. I worked in the entertainment industry – mostly in administration and human resource management. I’ve had the privilege of working with some pretty amazing people, some amazingly demanding people, and shall we say, some that were less than amazing? Anyway, we’re happy now growing moss between our toes here in in the Northwest.

Right after our move, I plunged into the needlepoint and knitting world and was thrilled with the amazing community of women. It wasn’t long before I was introduced to Heidi Berkman, the Founder of The Bloom Project. When she gave a presentation about starting a Portland Project, I was absolutely intrigued. I got to know her a little better when she set up a stitching retreat that I attended. This is where things began to jell for me.

The idea seemed so simple, but brilliant. Re-purpose perfectly good flowers that get thrown away? Terrific! Arrange flowers? Love it! Send a random gift of a beautiful bedside bouquet for someone in hospice? It’s such a small, wonderful gesture that means so much to end-of-life patients and their families. I was sold.

Like so many of our volunteers, I, too, had the experience of knowing first-hand what it was like to lose a parent or loved one, and I saw what hospice meant to them and us. I knew it was just those small gestures that mean so much to everyone involved. I know our family will be forever grateful for this amazing service.

I think the timing was right for giving back. As much as I love knitting and stitching (and I’m still involved with it), I was sitting too much and developed a nice crick in my neck! I was anxious to find something where I could move and make myself useful. I love doing start-ups, was completely comfortable with Heidi and impressed with what she had put together. It was immediately obvious to me that she had what my German-born husband would say is “fingerspitzengefühl” – a fingertip sense or feel, intuitive flair or instinct for leading. It all came together.

When she called and said she had something in mind for me, I had no problem telling her, “Whatever you want me to do, I’ll do it!” I suppose THAT was a mistake, but 2 years and some 2,000 hours later, I’m still at it! Initially I became her Portland Volunteer Coordinator and then the Lead Site Coordinator.

It’s been lots of work, and my husband has been incredibly supportive, but in the end, I have a new paycheck:

• Watching Heidi’s incredible dream come to fruition;
• Working with amazing volunteers, sharing a special camaraderie and building real friendships;
• Networking with organizations that love and support what we do;
• Watching with admiration the work of the service organizations and their dedicated caregivers;
• And most importantly, reading all those incredible notes of thanks from patients, families, friends and caregivers! That’s why I’m doing what I’m doing. That’s my paycheck!