WEST LEBANON — There’s a phrase that residents of Quail Hollow use to describe Beverlee Merrill.
“She does everything.”
It’s a refrain that Jill Polli, leasing and marketing manager at Quail Hollow, heard over and over again as she solicited names for the senior living facility’s first volunteer of the year award.
“Bev’s name was the only one,” Polli said.
Merrill received the award last Saturday night at Quail Hollow during a volunteer celebration. Polli and others worked hard to keep it a secret and Merrill was completely surprised.
“I just have always been volunteering, organizing, planning, getting other people to jump in,” Merrill said. “It’s a lot of fun.”
In her 13 years at Quail Hollow, Merrill has made quite an impact. She welcomes new residents and invites them to dinner. She organizes the art galleries in the buildings and worked with the Kilton Public Library to bring new books to residents each week. Merrill also started the popular Giveaway/Takeaway, where residents can swap items they no longer want during a three-day period. Unclaimed items get donated to Listen.
“It’s a huge hit,” Polli said. “It’s so great for the residents.”
“It’s in my DNA,” said Merrill, 87, who grew up in Corinth. “That’s just part of the culture up there is to get out there and volunteer and offer to do (things). I just grew up in that community-spirited little town.”
It’s also something Merrill and her late husband, Joe Merrill, instilled in their children, three of whom were present when Merrill received the award. The couple volunteered with Boy and Girl scout troops, and baseball teams.
“They’ve got my DNA too in my fashion,” she said.
Merrill’s daughter Nancy Peavey said her mother has always had a lot of ideas and is good at executing them. When it came to retirement and the move to Quail Hollow, Peavey was not surprised that Merrill became very involved.
“She is a very busy bee up there,” Peavey said. “Everybody I see, her friends, they say ‘your mom is always busy, she’s always on the run.’ ”
Merrill said Quail Hollow is a lively, active community. Volunteering has connected her to every community she has lived in.
“I would say it’s been my way of life,” Merrill said. “I’ll always be a volunteer.”
Liz Sauchelli can be reached at esauchelli@vnews.com or 603-727-3221.
