The spirit of volunteerism assists both governmental and private organizations in their duties.
Without it, many businesses would not be able to accomplish everything they set out to do and in cases of emergency management, volunteer groups are vital.
Here in Barbados, the Roving Response Team assists emergency personnel in a wide variety of areas. They recently received a new vehicle from the Department of Emergency Management and will soon be signing a memorandum of agreement with the national response organization to outline how the two could better work together.
Street Beat spoke to a few of the dedicated men who make up the team to find out why they do what they do.
Vice-president Denis Lashley was one of the team’s founding members 20 years ago. He said back then, the team was not nearly as active as today, or as knowledgeable.
“Back then we were just a collection of guys who wanted to give back to society. The threat level was different then. Now, there is a lot more commitment and more danger too; we are very aware of the amount of chemicals in houses today.
“Also, the [number] of incidents that happen has increased 100 per cent. Now we get a call every single week when before we would get called once a month,” he said.
Lashley said he had the privilege of watching the team grow in size over the years. He said it started with five people and now boasts more than 40. He said volunteerism was something that had to be nurtured.
“Volunteerism is inside all of us; it is how you culture it that counts. The recession has been a challenge for a lot of our members. It is definitely something to pull your pockets to help others, but it also reinforces commitment. In these difficult times, we have to bear in mind there will always be people out there in worse condition than us, so we need to continue being our brothers’ keepers,” he said.
As for himself, Lashley said his dedication had only grown over the years and his reward was seeing the satisfaction on people’s faces when they were relieved of stressful situations.
Junaid Patel had been a roving responder since 2003, officially joining in 2005. A financial controller for a large company, he said his volunteer work required an understanding with his employers.
“My director and immediate supervisors are very understanding. It is a give-and-take situation and they understand it is a social partnership to give back,” he said.
Patel said he had always wanted to give back to the community, so he had no problem joining the team. He said his most memorable moment so far was helping with the Arch Cot tragedy.
“That was one of the best and worst memories for me – the feeling of wanting to make a difference and the gloom of realizing you are not going to be able to do enough,” he said.
Patel said he would like to see corporate Barbados offer the team more support while the public could give more moral support as the work they do was important. He said he had no plans to go anywhere.
“I plan to do this for a very long time, for as long as I am physically able and then in other ways. It is a sacrifice in terms of time and money but it is enjoyable,” he said.
Harcourt Hinkson is the man in charge of the Roving Response Team’s day-to-day operations, a job he described as hectic and time-consuming. An entrepreneur, he spoke on juggling his volunteer work with his business and family.
“It is not an everyday job; it is a task I perform on a needs basis. If it is a planned event, it can be managed, but emergencies are different. I am self-employed so I have more flexibility and my employees understand. As for my wife . . . she understands – for the most part. She has never asked me to give it up,” he said.
Hinkson joined in 2006 and his first major response was to Arch Cot. He said watching the Miami-Dade Rescue Team at work was “an experience within an experience”.
As for his reasons for joining, he too said he loved helping people, so when he came across the organization it was a natural fit.
