Medina woman honored for volunteer efforts

Kay Van Nostrand named to SUNY Brockport’s ‘Hall of Heritage’

Photo by Tom Rivers – Kay Van Nostrand, right, visits with Adelia Hellert last week in Shelby. Van Nostrand volunteers with several community groups, including Hospice of Orleans as a direct care volunteer.

MEDINA – She is a committed volunteer for many local causes and Kay Van Nostrand’s efforts haven’t gone unnoticed by her alma mater.

Van Nostrand, a retired Medina teacher, is active with Habitat for Humanity, Hospice of Orleans, the Lyndonville Presbyterian Church as well as the Presbytery of the Genesee Valley.

In recognition of her humanitarian efforts, Brockport State College has named Van Nostrand to its “Hall of Heritage” – a Hall of Fame for alumni. Van Nostrand graduated from the college in 1964 and then worked as an elementary school physical education teacher, retiring in 1997.

Van Nostrand said she enjoys giving back to the community. She has been involved with Habitat since soon after the organization started in 1992. It has worked with residents to build 12 new houses and do two extensive rehabs in Orleans County. She is currently the group’s president.

She is a long-time member of the Lyndonville Presbyterian Church, serving as an elder and clerk of the Session. She has served as moderator of the Presbytery and on numerous committees for Presbytery.

For the past 11 years Van Nostrand has volunteered with Hospice of Orleans as a direct care volunteer. She visits people for about two hours once a week. She was named the agency’s Volunteer of the Year in 2009.

Van Nostrand has been visiting Adelia Hellert weekly, and those visits are important for Hellert and her family.

“We sit and talk,” Mrs. Hellert said. “We’re so much alike.”

Hellert was suffering serious health problems. She has rebounded and is in Hospice’s transitions program for people who are home-bound but not facing a terminal illness.

Van Nostrand brings a listening ear and also likes to share news from around town, Hellert’s daughter Marcia Cook said.

She is grateful for Van Nostrand. When she comes over, Cook uses the time to go shopping and run errands.

“It lets me take care of me, too,” she said.

Van Nostrand said the volunteer roles have all enriched her life, helping her make new friends and improve the quality of life in her community.