A lifelong commitment to volunteering: Celebrating 50 years of service

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November 18, 2025

When Diane Kincaid first walked through the University Hospital doors to volunteer in 1975, she never imagined she’d still be volunteering at London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) five decades later. During LHSC’s 150^th year, she celebrated an extraordinary milestone of her own – over 50 years of service in which she’s touched the lives of countless patients, families, and team members.

“Volunteering at LHSC has given me something important to do, and I’m just proud that I’ve been able to do this for as long as I have,” Diane says. “I’m grateful for this opportunity I’ve had to give back to the community.”

Beginnings

Diane’s decision to begin volunteering was simple enough. She recalls first joining as something to keep her busy when her sons began school full-time and her husband was working shiftwork at the London Kellogg’s’ factory.

“I thought, maybe I’ll check out that new hospital and see if they need some help,” she recalls. “I came here, and they hired me right away, and I’ve been here ever since.”

At the time, the hospital looked and felt very different; programs were smaller, and volunteers were expected to take on some roles they wouldn’t be asked to do today, such as transporting blood samples. Volunteers also donned a much different uniform from today’s – the women wearing green-and-white striped dresses and the men in lab coats similar to a physician’s attire.

“I still remember my first shift,” Diane remembers, “It was very interesting, and I wondered ‘am I going to be able to do this or not,’ but it was a piece of cake.”

Changes over time

Diane has volunteered in a number of different areas over the years, with most of her time spent in the University Hospital Lab Test Centre. Over that time, she has witnessed remarkable changes in medicine, technology, and in the roles of volunteers.

University Hospital’s volunteer program launched with 50 members at the time of the hospital’s opening in November of 1972 and grew to 140 by early 1973. Between 1963 and 1969, the Victoria Hospital Auxiliary operated a service section until the Department of Volunteers was formalized with the goal of broadening the scope of volunteer service to include more people in the community. The first edition of the University Hospital volunteer newsletter, printed in early 1973, lists the roles of the 140 volunteers. The list includes 23 volunteers serving as tour guides, one teaching English to a long-term patient who only spoke Italian, and three assisting in a similar capacity to what Diane now does in the Lab Test Centre.

An article in the Summer 1969 edition of Vic Life, a quarterly publication for staff, listed the following as roles for volunteers at Victoria Hospital, which are still important components of LHSC’s volunteer program.

• Doing crafts with patients
• Wayfinding
• Assisting at the Lab Test Centre
• Running the Auxiliary gift shops

Diane’s role is one that has remained steady over the years, but today’s tasks look different to when she began, she says. Initially, she would hand-write labels for the required tubes needed for testing, sometimes writing nearly 100 per day. Today, there is the convenience of label printers, but Diane is still relied upon for her ability to keep patients moving in and out of the Lab Test Centre smoothly.

Dedication and motivation

Volunteering twice a week for four hours at a time adds up quickly, and it’s estimated that Diane has given close to 20,000 hours of her time to LHSC as a volunteer. Each of those hours represents a moment of kindness, a reassuring presence for a patient or family, or an extra set of hands for busy staff. So, what keeps someone coming back week after week for that long? For Diane, it has been a mix of purpose, fulfillment, and community.

“Volunteering here has always been very interesting,” Diane says. “I’ve enjoyed getting to know everybody, and I’ve learned a lot.”

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Diane generously volunteered at LHSC’s COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic at the Western Fair Agriplex, from January to October 2021. While this opportunity was optional for volunteers, Diane chose to step up and support the community through the entire campaign, even though her age placed her in a high-risk category.

“Diane is one of those incredibly reliable and consistent faces you can always count on,” says Katelyn Glen, a Volunteer Resource Specialist at LHSC. “She arrives early, rarely misses a shift, and brings a calm, steady presence to every volunteer role she takes on.”

Through the years, she has formed lasting relationships with staff members, fellow volunteers, and even families she has supported, and those relationships have made the hospital feel like a second home.

“Diane has been an icon at the University Hospital Lab Test Centre,” says Andrea Dulong, a Phlebotomist who works in the Lab Test Centre. “She has our system down to a science and shares her knowledge with new recruits. She is independent and strong, and her sense of humour keeps us laughing. We know her, and she knows us.”

Diane has countless stories and memories from her time as a volunteer, but what stands out the most for her are the human connections. The patients and families she has met, the staff she has worked with, and the friendships formed with fellow volunteers have made her five decades of service deeply meaningful.

“There’s no single story that stands out above the rest,” she says, “It’s just how well the staff have always treated me. They make me feel like one of them by including me in their conversations and making me feel so comfortable.”

As LHSC celebrates its 150th anniversary, Diane’s story is a reminder that history is not only made through groundbreaking research or clinical milestones, but also through the quiet, steady presence of people who choose, year after year, to give their time, energy and compassion in dedication to others.

“Diane has been a pillar of the volunteer program at University Hospital,” says Meaghan Innes, Manager of Volunteer Services at LHSC. “Her commitment to volunteering and to her community is an inspiration to us in Volunteer Services. She has mentored the younger generations over the years, and we are so thankful she chose to volunteer at LHSC.”