In this Volunteers' Week we've been celebrating - and thanking - the hundreds of local people who support CHFT through all weathers to provide care for our patients and their families.
Our Chair Philip Lewer joined some of them yesterday in our discharge lounge, Libby and Bertie's at HRI, to hand over some of the hundreds of specially-made cakes for the week by local bakers Hadfields'.
One of the coordinating team, Anya Macbeth issued a massive thank you to all in the recruitment team who helped her box, label and tie bows on 300 cupcakes ahead of the delivery around our hospitals. On Monday she notched up 15,000 steps doing the rounds with the goodies!
Yesterday Philip Lewer, Chair met up with just a few of our volunteers in the Libby and Bertie lounge, for a chat, bun and a cup of tea.
Philip said "I think our volunteers are brilliant. What an inspirational bunch of people, who are all strong and passionate with a massive commitment to what they love. All with a good and honest opinion."
We have hundreds of volunteers and thanks goes to every single one of them in Volunteers' Week.
Here we profile one just one of them - who comes in every single day - as a demonstration of their incredible work with us, their motivation and what brings them in to support us.
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John Dickinson, 73, pictured with Anya, in the montage top left, "died" twice in intensive care and now comes in seven days a week to talk to patients, do brews and biscuits to give back.
He was also struggling to be on his own following the sudden loss of his wife, and while was visiting ward 4A once a week for blood transfusions it was suggested to him that he could volunteer.
He said: "Being a volunteer here gives me a reason to get up in the morning, get dressed every day to come here and do something that I love."
When John first started he spent two months with a bed-ridden patient, then the ward wanted him to stay on and be there more regularly So he now comes in every day from 9am till around lunchtime.
He added: "I meet lots of different people, I love the nurses and I do get lots of praise which makes it even more worthwhile.
"I love to see the improvement in patients. After a stroke and and often newly-admitted some patients struggle to talk and have really poor memory. So I give each of them a job.
"I ask them all to say "Good Morning John" to me everyday. Some of them forget, but eventually they all remember and say good morning to me, so, in a little way, I know I'm making a difference and their condition is improving. I love it!"
John retired at 65. He was self-employed, owning his own small engineering business making stainless steel commonly used for hose fittings.
"After I retired I was very poorly for a while. I had a heart valve replacement which went wrong at another hospital and I was in ICU for four weeks and I died twice. This is why volunteering is so important to me - because it means I can give something back.
"I don't plan on retiring from volunteering any time soon, I'm going to be doing for as long as my health allows me to. It also means I still get to wear the great yellow Tshirt. They really do lighten the place up."