He was wearing a suit for the occasion and his blond hair gleamed. His brother came along as a guest to learn more about volunteering.

The event was the Clovernook Center for the Blind's 2003 Volunteer Awards dinner, and the dedicated volunteer was 7-year-old Billy Phillips of North College Hill. His brother is 5.

An older friend was volunteering, and Billy asked if he could, too. He has been a frequent reader and assistant shopper for volunteer coordinator Jacque Horn, who is visually impaired.

David Sunderman, 14, was recognized as Clovernook's Teen Volunteer of the Year. A freshman and offensive lineman at Roger Bacon High School, David came to the center to help with the summer youth program.

"There were kids who were blind or couldn't see very well or had other disorders," David says, "and I just helped with some things so they could enjoy themselves." He made friends and is looking forward to coming back this summer.

"They told me I did over 100 hours of service over there," he said, "and I couldn't believe it! It didn't seem like that much."

Clovernook Center depends heavily upon its diverse volunteer pool. People of all ages, educational background and abilities give time to keep the center's braille production, rehabilitation programs, recreational events and other services running smoothly.

Dorothy Sefton, honored at last week's dinner with the Helen G. Levine Volunteer of the Year award, began volunteering as a copy holder in the braille transcription department in 1995. After a stroke, she recently moved to a nursing home and has become a wheelchair user. The day after moving, she was back on the job - reading the print copy of a book along with a proofreader reading the braille version, to detect and correct errors.

Veteran Cincinnati volunteer Ed Lenihan added Clovernook five years ago to the list of local nonprofit agencies that benefit from his time and talent.

Diagnosed more than a decade ago with multiple sclerosis, Lenihan has lived in a nursing home for eight years. There, he receives the daily nursing care he requires, and assistance getting in and out of his motorized wheelchair. But, at 56, he says if he didn't have work to do, he would be bored out of his mind.

At Clovernook, he acts as a guide for outings to the symphony or calls monthly bingo games.

He also teaches a Bible study class at Judson Village in Westwood, where he lives, tutors fourth-graders in an after-school program, serves on a number of boards and committees for several nonprofits, and is frequently called upon to write letters or provide testimony to the Ohio General Assembly on issues affecting people with disabilities.

Asked why he volunteers, Lenihan says, "I believe God doesn't make junk. Everybody has a gift, and I'm trying to use mine."

At Clovernook, the volunteers are little children, teenagers, working-age people with and without disabilities, retirees. It's only one of the hundreds of volunteer opportunities in the Tristate.

Today begins National Volunteer Week. Look around and be grateful for the volunteers in your personal universe. And then, think about joining the ranks yourself. Everybody has a gift.

Contact Deborah Kendrick by phone: 673-4474; fax: 321-6430; e-mail: dkkendrick@earthlink.net.