2023-05-25T23:00:00+00:00

Volunteer spotlight: meet Gordon Robertson

Former fireman and offshore worker, Gordon Robertson has moved from being the token man to the Friends fixer.

When Gordon retired six years ago, he wasn’t ready to sit back and put his feet up. So he tried a number of roles with charity organisations before settling on a voluntary role in Roxburghe House.

Seventy-year-old Gordon had spent over 40 years working both onshore and offshore in safety management in the oil and gas industry. Before that, he spent seven years in Grampian Fire Service.

“When I arrived at Roxburghe House, they asked me what I’d like to do and I didn’t know,” he said.

“They suggested the day unit because as they said ‘we’ve never had a man on the day unit before’ so that was decided.”

Gordon became part of the team and says he thoroughly enjoys the time he spends interacting with both patients and staff.

He worked in the day unit until the outbreak of Covid, back in 2020, and operations there were suspended.

However Gordon decided to continue helping out, and joined the gardening team. In addition to his expert weeding and pruning, he acts as the garden team co-ordinator and he’s also spent five years on the board of trustees of Friends of Roxburghe House Grampian.

It’s a warm-hearted family. Gordon’s wife Norma volunteers on reception

“I am really fortunate that I can work here because the staff-volunteer relationship here is great,” said Gordon. “It’s a special place to work.”

“The team is totally committed and the camaraderie is wonderful. Roxburghe House is a small unit in the wider NHS (Grampian). The staff appreciate it, we appreciate it and I really do feel I have a special relationship with them all.

“For example, when I arrived today, Lee (the day unit senior nurse) gave me a huge hug and that is an example of how strong the staff-volunteer relationship is in Roxburghe House.

“If you get the chance to volunteer, go for it. My life has been made that bit richer by my experiences as a volunteer and the variety of things that keep it interesting.

“And of course, it also means once a year I get to be Santa…”

Find out more about becoming a volunteer at Roxburghe House.

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