Congratulations to Buz Baetz, the 2023 recipient of the Ernestine McCollum Volunteer of the Year Award. Volunteers considered for this award exemplify dedication to the program by contributing extraordinary amounts of time and energy to our organization. Buz currently delivers meals at the Sherwood Site in Cockeysville on Mondays and Wednesdays. However, Buz began his service with MOWCM as a call volunteer in 2020 for Call Connections, a program at Meals on Wheels of Central Maryland where volunteers and clients are paired together to share in the positive experience and benefits of personal connection through a phone conversation. This program, aimed at reducing loneliness and social isolation, connects volunteers with clients to keep them socially engaged and connected to the community. After eight months as a call volunteer, Buz began delivering meals in April of 2021. Since then, he has delivered 175 routes for over 200 hours. Joanne Codd, the Sherwood Site Coordinator who has worked with Buz for many years, spoke about his impact as a volunteer. “He is always willing to help deliver a route when another volunteer can’t do it at the last minute and constantly checks in with me to see if I need any additional support. He is always willing to go the extra mile.”
Buz is passionate about helping our clients and enjoys being the person who delivers the meal and sees a client when they may not see anyone else. “I volunteer because it truly brings joy and peace to my heart to be able to help, albeit in a small way, our clients who deserve and need, not only our meals, but a few moments of human contact. I hope they get as much comfort from it as we do,” said Buz.
Buz is also a member of the Volunteer Advisory Council at Meals on Wheels of Central Maryland. As a Volunteer Advisory Council member, he works to connect with other volunteers at the Sherwood Site in Cockeysville. He represents and advocates for clients, volunteers and the organization as a whole while also recruiting new volunteers and clients.
When Buz is not volunteering, he enjoys being outside, golfing, going to the beach, hiking, rafting, and kayaking and spending time with his four children and five grandchildren.