Volunteers play a huge role in the lives of our patients. They bring friendship, understanding, and the desire to help and make a difference. We invite you to explore our volunteer opportunities. –

Volunteer Success Stories

On a Saturday in October, Texas State University Psychology Association hosted a party on our Adult Psychiatric Services Unit. After gorging on a feast of party fare – chips, dips, pizza drinks – the patients headed outside for a game of volleyball.

The patients and the students split into teams of nearly 20 people with an auxiliary team of as many people acting as spectators and cheerleaders. Every patient participated in one of the most engaging volleyball games either group had experienced. As the volunteer coordinator at ASH, I had the most wonderful time watching the students interact with patients, in total laughter and friendship, free of any apprehension or anxiety!

The patients ran up to me afterward with sincere and enthusiastic appreciation:
- “This has made our weekend great!” – “It is a wonderful change. The students are fun!”
- “When can we do this again?”The students told were equally taken by their experiences: “We want to do this again next month.”
“It was not what we were expecting.”
“The first time I played volleyball in years and it was fun.”

The day was a huge success, and I look forward to the next visit from Texas State students! Food, people, a ball and a net. Simple ingredients but a guaranteed recipe for making the week of a patient!

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On a sunny Saturday morning in September, the Lee Mannix Center for Canine Behavior organized an AKC Responsible Dog Ownership Day event on the hospital campus. Our therapy pet teams (Ash Pet Pard’ners and Divine Canines), groups of our patients, and families from all over our community all attended this event. A fellow staff member relayed the following anecdote:

“We were walking along and this little girl was having such a good time visiting with the dogs and their owners. At one point during the event, the little girl looked up and saw the Administrative Building and said, ‘Oh, I almost forgot I was in the hospital. She couldn’t have summed the day up better!”

Volunteers play a huge role in the lives of our patients. They bring friendship, understanding, and the desire to help and make a difference. I always tell my volunteers, “The life you change may be your own.” I see it happen daily; seeing the understanding in their eyes as they grow to know and love the patients.