“I know what it feels like to sit in that chair, and I try to bring encouragement,” said Bill Moore, the Elizabethtown man who was treated for squamous cell carcinoma in the same room four-and-a-half years ago. “I remember how bad I felt and how hard I struggled, but I made it through and so can they.”
Moore, 76, makes fast friends with many of the patients, joking with them and, when appropriate, telling his story of survival as proof that treatment works. His cancer stemmed from childhood radiation treatments for acne, and he wasn’t expected to live, but “Look at me now,” he says.
Moore, who began volunteering at Penn State Health 16 years ago when he retired from his job in sales, says the health campus was a natural choice because he and his family have gotten great medical care there his entire life. He grew up and raised his own family in Elizabethtown.
He has also volunteered in the mail department and the surgical waiting room, but the infusion room is where he feels the greatest connection now.
“Some of the nurses there are the same ones I had when I was a patient, and I like getting to know the patients,” he said.
Being part of the Penn State Health community enriches his life, Moore said.
“I’ve gotten to know a lot of people there, especially when I was president of the board of volunteers,” he said. “I’ve met a lot of good people, and it just feels good to be there.”