March 4, 2004

Volunteer of the week:  Daphne Teifeld

Giving love and attention by nurturing newborns and delivering flowers to patients in the hospital are two of the things that have not only become a priority in Daphne Teifeld's life, but have also enriched her life. 

She volunteers at the Good Samaritan Hospital in San Jose and has found solace in giving.  Monday mornings and Tuesday afternoons, Teifeld can be found in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) cuddling with at-risk babies. 

"Being around these little babies is amazing.  They are these perfect tiny little beings, with all of their fingers and all of their toes.  They calm right down once you hold them," she says. 
Some people would find it heartbreaking to see a baby so small and needy, but Teifeld loves to be around babies, and finds it is miraculous and something that brings joy to her life. 
"It's so rewarding.  It makes the baby feel good," she says, "And I feel good doing it."

Teifeld says that it is difficult when the babies go home, after she has spent many hours with them in her arms. "But you know that it's good for them.  It may be sad for us, but knowing that it's good for them makes it a perfectly happy situation," she says. 

It is a common belief that babies don't smile until they are a little older, but Teifeld knows otherwise, "They smile," she says, "it may not be on purpose, but I know I've seen some smiles."

On Tuesday mornings, she helps out in the mother-baby ward of the hospital, where she helps brand new mothers in caring for their babies.  She says that since she had her two daughters, now 20 and 25, she has been fascinated by new life.  Since then, she has learned, that patience is, indeed, a virtue.

In addition to being a natural nurturer, Teifeld is also considered to be a very hardworking individual by Mary McCall, director of Volunteer Services at the hospital.

"She is someone we can always count on,” says McCall, “She's very pleasant and responsible, and very valuable!  She's been with us for about two years and she's quickly assumed a leadership position as chairperson in the Mother-Baby Unit, where she makes the schedules for and ensures training for volunteers in the ward.”

Teifeld also gives her time to patient services on Friday afternoons, where she takes patients out for dismissal and receives and delivers flowers to them. 

"Being around here has made me a more humble person.  I realize that things like traffic or my children's messy room aren't anything to get worried about," says Teifeld, "People think they have problems, they should come here and hold these little babies or see these families suffering the illness of a loved one, then they'll realize they have no problems."

Teifeld quit her job as a bookkeeper for a commercial flooring company about two years ago so she would have time for traveling.  Giving back to the community is also a way for her to teach important values to her daughters, which is something that was passed to her, by her mother many years ago.  Growing up in Israel, her mother volunteered at a soldiers' home, reading for the blind. "When you have the time," says Teifeld, "It's time to give back what you can."

On Monday afternoons, Teifeld is volunteering at Los Alamitos Elementary.  There, she helps first and second grade children learn to read.  "I am excited to see how excited they are about learning, it is so much fun to be around them," she says "They have so much energy."

Teifeld doesn't like to sit still—she considers herself to be a hands-on person, "A doer."  When she isn't volunteering, she enjoys traveling and she has a passion for cars.  She and her family have traveled to many countries, and at least once a year she visits her family in Israel. 

Teifeld isn't alone in her efforts at the hospital.  According to McCall, volunteers contributed more than 57,000 hours at the Good Samaritan Hospital in 2003, which represents $1 million. 

To find out how to volunteer, go to www.goodsamsanjose.com .

—By Miranda Schultz