Loretta Kortan has been a volunteer within the Good Samaritan Society in Tyndall, South Dakota, for more than two decades.

One could call her award for being the top Good Samaritan Society volunteer in her region a lifetime achievement honor but that would be misleading because it would minimize all the things she’s done lately.

It is safe to say the same would apply to the other regional award winners as well. This year those also recognized are Richard McCauley – Sioux Falls Village; Jack Burnell – Mountain Home, Arkansas; Judy Young – Hastings, Nebraska; Wes Underwood – Boise, Idaho; and Cathy Gasteiger – St. Ansgar, Iowa.

Normally, Good Samaritan Society locations would plan events to honor these volunteers. Not so this year, though if they’re anything like Kortan, that’s not a big deal anyway.

In describing what goes into being a volunteer for a Good Samaritan Society community, the words of one location defined the criteria like this:

“Simply put, volunteer is just another word for love. Volunteers help with activities, provide companionship, offer spiritual care, entertain with music, assist with clerical duties and help fulfill the Society’s mission to share God’s love in word and deed.”

Those words would certainly apply in Kortan’s case. As a native of nearby Tabor, Kortan was introduced to the Good Samaritan Society community in Tyndall in 1989 when her mother-in-law moved there. Ever since then, she has tried to help. The list of ways she has done that would best be summarized with a question:

 What does the community need?

“I have a love for the residents,” Kortan said. “They need people who can walk in there and make them smile and make them laugh or give them a hug. I love joking with them and being positive. I just have a great love for seniors – I don’t know what else to say.”

She belongs to a group of volunteers who help the Tyndall community in many ways.  It’s a squad of motivated folks who think the same way she does. That includes getting involved in projects like the annual pie and ice cream social, buying Christmas presents, and making sure the hairdressing folks have enough supplies.

In other words, whatever else the community might need that a group of committed volunteers might be able to supply.

“It’s a wonderful group and they’re very willing to support everything we want to do,” Kortan said. “I’m certainly not the only one.”

That kind of a team gives everyone the opportunity to focus on the rewarding moments rather than the organizational ones.

“The residents are such a lovely group of people,” Kortan said. “It’s so neat to see them recognize you and smile. They want to be loved and they want the smiles. Those are things I hope I can give them.”

The presence of the coronavirus has definitely altered the routines for Kortan and the other volunteers being recognized this year. The locations they serve are not going anywhere, however. When things get back to normal there will be ample opportunity for Kortan and her kind to get back to serving.

“Our community is here because they need to be here,” Kortan said. “They have such a loving support system for the residents and for us.”

When the staff at Tyndall shared with her that she was going to be honored, Kortan wondered aloud if they’d told lies to bump up her volunteer resume.

She was joking, but she remains genuinely overwhelmed.

“I know there are so many good people who are extremely committed to the Good Samaritan Society,” she said. “It’s truly an honor and I’m humbled by it.”