Eye on LSSI, Spring 2006 ( Download PDF of entire publication)

When Scott Gierke, age 53, a resident of Mt. Prospect, was working 12-hour days as a corporate lawyer, “I would always say that I don’t have time [for volunteering],” he recalls. “I’d say ‘God, I will get back to you when I have time.’”

And now, after taking early retirement last year, Scott is making good on that promise. He volunteers with Journeys Psychosocial Rehabilitation Program, a community-based program of Lutheran Social Services of Illinois (LSSI) for adults with mental illness in Chicago.

“When I was thinking about what I’d do in retirement,” he says, “a high priority [for me] was to figure out what I could do to give back, to feel like I was making a difference in people’s lives. I wanted to do something that would be helpful to others — and that I would enjoy doing.”

Scott, a lawyer for 25 years, explains that the Rev. Dr. Frederick Aigner, LSSI president, “was my family’s pastor for many years at Our Saviour’s [Lutheran Church in Arlington Heights], and he had a big impact on our lives. When he left Our Saviour’s [to become president of LSSI], I looked into LSSI, liked what I saw and became a supporter of [the agency] financially.”

As chance would have it, Scott ran into Aigner several years later, about a year before Scott was planning to retire. He asked Aigner for some ideas on volunteer opportunities at LSSI, who recommended he contact Cheryl Oseguera, Journeys director.

“Cheryl learned about me and my interests first,” Scott remembers, noting that Oseguera wanted his volunteer work to involve something he enjoyed so that he would stay involved with the program on a long-term basis. Right away, she noticed how active Scott was — he talked about how much he and his wife Barb enjoyed exploring Chicago and its many cultural and recreational offerings, along with golfing, biking and other sports activities.

Scott recalls Oseguera saying, “‘What we’re missing in this program is just the opportunity to go out and have a fun time. Why don’t you take our people out and do the kind of things you enjoy doing?’”

She also sent him some information so he could develop a better understanding of mental illness. “He took the initiative to learn as much as he could,” says Oseguera, explaining that he attended staff meetings to get to know them and learn about the members of the program. They were in contact for about a year before Scott began working directly with people served in the program.

Starting in April 2006, Scott became the “cruise director” for the group, tasked with identifying and organizing activities — providing members with “a weekly opportunity in the art of having fun.”

So, one day a week, on Tuesdays, that’s just what Scott does. The group regularly takes advantage of what the city has to offer; their field trips have included visits to the Chicago Botanic Garden, the Adler Planetarium, the Museum of Science and Industry and the Lincoln Park Zoo, among many other well-known attractions.

Once Scott comes up with the idea, he and the staff work to figure out logistics (e.g., transportation, food, etc.), and presents the idea to Journeys members. He also recruits staff members to accompany the group.

“Our goal is [for] people [to] have fun in a social setting,” he says. “And, in the course of doing that, we reinforce members’ life skills [in their behavior] out in the community.”

Sometimes the group’s “cruises” don’t involve going somewhere special. Holiday parties, held right at the program site, are always a hit with the group, including last year’s Halloween celebration that featured a costume contest.

And sometimes, activities focus on helping others. Last fall, the group did some volunteering of their own when they participated in Cubs broadcaster Ron Santo’s Walk to Cure Diabetes. Right before Thanksgiving, Journeys members also brought canned goods from home, which together they delivered to a local food pantry. Shortly thereafter, the group had a Thanksgiving dinner, complete with speeches on the importance of being thankful and giving back.

Larry, a Journeys member, says, “[Scott] teaches us a lot. We do a lot of activities, and I learn from them. I love getting out and doing things.”

“He has been an asset to our treatment team,” says Oseguera. “Scott brings consistency, patience and acceptance to all members of the group. He is an incredible man who asks for nothing in return. The members look up to him and [seek him out] for direction and support.”

With regard to understanding people who have a mental illness, Scott says, “When you cut through it, they are just like you and me — fighting their way through life while confronting some kind of condition [or issue]. … They are everyday people with an added hurdle to deal with.”

Scott says what really crystallized his understanding of mental illness was when he heard a speaker at a mental health lobby day he and Journeys members and staff attended this past May at the state capitol.

“The speaker said the biggest problem is that it’s more acceptable in our society to have a physical illness than it is to have a mental illness — to have something wrong with your kidney or heart as opposed to something with your brain chemistry,” he explains. “Mental illness is just a different kind of physical illness — it’s just another organ of the body.”

On many levels, it is evident that Scott is finding great joy as a volunteer. “It’s been an incredibly rewarding experience,” he says. “I get more back than I’m giving.”

“I’ve made at least 60 new friends [whom] I enjoy being with. [It’s great] seeing them smiling and laughing. What the program does is phenomenal. The staff is great. They are dedicated and compassionate people who really care about the members. I see up close that the Journeys program is making a difference in members’ lives, and I’m excited about being a part of that.”

Scott admits that previously he felt guilty, “like I was cheating God. Now that I am involved with Journeys and other volunteer activities, I realize that I was cheating myself,” he says. “I just wish I had become involved with volunteering and social ministry sooner.”

And that’s the message he would like to spread. “Make the time to volunteer,” he says. “Don’t wait until you’ve retired.”

And he is very pleased to be volunteering in an LSSI program. “LSSI is a very impressive organization, and it excites me to be a part of its ministry,” he says.

For more information on volunteering, contact Joy Medrano, LSSI’s volunteer coordinator, at 847/390-1488 or at Joy.Medrano@LSSI.org.