20 March 2025
Volunteering for Harbour Hospice provides social connection and a sense of purpose. But for 22-year-old Jack Whyman, from Warkworth, it is helping him to rebuild his life.
Two years ago Jack was involved in a serious car accident. Driving home from a friend’s on the open road he lost control of his car, went into a ditch, bounced back across the road into a power pole then rolled down a bank. Jack was lucky to survive and had to undergo emergency surgery to reduce swelling on his brain. The surgery caused a brain bleed, which caused a stroke, which left Jack partially paralysed down the left side of his body.
It took him months to relearn to walk, he had to spend several months in a 24-hour care facility for people with brain injuries, and the life he’d just started to build crashed down around his ears.
Jack had to give up his building apprenticeship and the flat he’d just moved into with friends. He was no longer able to drive a car, but he says the greatest loss was his sense of independence.
“In the first few months after the accident I couldn’t even go to the bathroom by myself. And even now, most of the time I’m stuck at home doing different kinds of rehab.”
Jack set himself on a path to rebuild his life. In October last year he signed up to volunteer at Harbour Hospice’s Garage Sale store in Warkworth, after seeing the hospice truck driving around, and experiencing the warmth of hospice when he went into Tui House to have an injury seen by a district nurse.
Jack helps out at the Garage Sale every Monday and Wednesday, where he refurbishes tools and prices them, and “anything else that needs doing”. He’s a popular member of the team and enjoys the camaraderie with the other volunteers.
Jack says this work is helping him transition back into paid work. “It’s given me more confidence and a sense of purpose. I find it quite fulfilling. You’re part of a team and you’re helping out and learning. It has given me back some of my independence.”
He is hopeful of a future where he can still work in the construction industry. “But maybe as a quantity surveyor or in health and safety, rather than as a builder”, he says. He’s also planning to move to the Gold Coast with his girlfriend, and that has been a powerful motivator to work hard on his rehabilitation every day. “Yeah, she’s already gone over, and I’ll be following as soon as I’m in a position to be able to find work there. That’s the plan.”
Feeling inspired by Jack's story? If you'd like to learn more about volunteering for Harbour Hospice please email us.
