My ENN | Stories from Volunteers & Members

We asked one of our active volunteers, Angelina di Fazio, to tell us about her experience with ENN. Here's her story.

When I decided to sign up with ENN as a volunteer, I couldn’t have imagined all that would happen next.

First, a friend from ENN encouraged me to reach out to my neighbors, something I had never considered. This resulted in meeting a beekeeper who took me to visit her hives - especially thrilling for an enthusiastic gardener like myself. But that was just the beginning.

ENN arranged a garden tour at the home of a Master Gardener who, as it turned out, was one of my long-term instructors at the Bellevue Demonstration Garden. But as I viewed her magnificent garden, I noticed that there was much work to be done such as weeding, cultivating the greenhouse, planting, and pruning so I immediately offered my services. But wait, there’s more.

My neighbor suffered a stroke so I signed him up for ENN services so he could receive rides to medical appointments and grocery shopping. I offered to cut back a two-year growth of blackberry vines as well as taking on other yard projects.

Blackberry Bushes

I asked for assistance and was pleased that an ENN volunteer offered, but you will NEVER guess what happened next.

I asked the volunteer about her surname which was the same as a family ancestor, and yes, we discovered that we are related. Our mutual ancestor arrived on the Mayflower becoming a leading light in establishing communities; however, it seems we also had bootleggers and pirates from that family line.

Thanks to ENN, not only am I making new friends, but I have also discovered a distant family member. Best of all, I still work in the Master Gardener’s garden as well as in my neighbor’s yard. It is not a stretch to say that ENN is enriching my life socially and also through service to others. I can’t wait to see what happens next.

Angelina Di Fazio

Would you like to volunteer? Learn about benefits and opportunities with ENN.

Complete our Volunteer Application Form