Cris Ryker started out volunteering at the Neighborhood Health Clinic when a friend, Nancy Ginocchio, suggested she could do what she loved for a good cause. Mrs. Ginocchio suggested she prepare a meal for the volunteers at the Neighborhood Health Clinic. That was five years ago.
Now Mrs. Ryker is a fixture at the Neighborhood Health Clinic. She volunteers on a regular basis as a translator during clinic sessions. She also took on the role of Grand Prize Drawing Chair for the 2011 Block Party coordinating record number of ticket sales. “This year I am committed to seeing all 500 tickets sold,” says Mrs. Ryker.
Mrs. Ryker has been known to invite her friends over to home for “the most expensive chili dinner you’ll ever eat”. For a donation to the Neighborhood Health Clinic her friends enjoy a home cooked meal. She also cooks breakfast for the volunteers at the alternate Saturday morning Clinic sessions.
Recently Mrs. Ryker was “moved” to share her experience about volunteering at the Neighborhood Health Clinic. She wrote a letter to the editor in response to an article in the Naples Daily News which asked readers “have you ever been so moved by something that you are compelled to do something positive as a result”. That letter was published on November 2, 2011.
