Tracy and Robert Chisholm are long-time St John volunteers — they met and fell in love volunteering for St John.
Tracy has provided service to St John throughout her volunteer career spanning Midland, Northern and Central Regions.
She has maintained clinical competency since 1991 and continues with her role as nurse in the Emergency Department at Waikato Hospital.
Tracy has held multiple roles with the Area Committee as area executive officer, and with youth, ambulance and events.
She also played a key role in establishing the St John Opportunity Shop in Te Awamutu.
Tracy is described as an exceptional advocate for St John and is well known and respected throughout the Te Awamutu area.
Robert is an operational team leader at Manukau Ambulance Station and is recognised as a high-performing and committed member.
He has spent his own time building and developing a training simulation suite and a training ambulance body at the Te Awamutu Station.
This has created an innovative learning environment for the operational staff in the area.
Robert is described as a strong mentor and trainer of all levels of staff and an outstanding role model.
Tracy and Robert are among the 9200 St John volunteers who contribute more than two million hours to New Zealand communities.
Tracy says she wouldn't have it any other way.
"I believe in what St John is all about — offering health and wellbeing to the community."
Tracy says she was inspired to start volunteering as a teenager after benefiting from the generosity of older volunteers as a child.
"It takes a village to raise a child — it takes people like me volunteering their time to create a community that everyone thrives in."
St John director of community health services Sarah Manley says St John volunteers help enable New Zealanders to lead healthy, independent lives.
St John has volunteers in the Caring Caller programme, health shuttle volunteers, Friends of the Emergency Department and SPCA Outreach Therapy Pets co-ordinators.
Volunteers also keep opportunity shop doors open, run local area committees and co-ordinate New Zealand's largest youth programme to future leaders.
St John director of clinical operations Norma Lane says the frontline is lucky to have hardworking volunteers who provide professional medical care to the community, along with friendship, loyalty and care to their work and colleagues.
"Volunteers are out there every day, saving lives, enabling New Zealanders to live independently and ultimately making New Zealand society the kind of place that we all love being a part of.
"I cannot thank them enough."
Find out more about volunteering with St John here
