Standup political satirist Arthur Winston, 73, has spent much of his retirement working the borough’s synagogue, community center and church circuit. Last Thursday morning, hours after downpours wreaked havoc on Kennedy International Airport’s arrivals and departures schedules, the Travelers Aid volunteer knew how to handle the tough crowd.
When wayward travelers pelted him with questions about the locations of AirTrain pickups, escalators and taxi stands outside of the baggage carousel in the airport’s Terminal 6, he responded with typical playfulness.
“You can rest in any room in here that you’d like,” he smilingly answered when a hurried woman, with a suitcase in tow, asked: “Is there a rest room along here?”
In a typical four-hour shift, between 30 and 50 travelers approach Winston, or one of the dozen other red blazer-wearing aids stationed throughout the airport each day, asking questions as they try to navigate one of the world’s largest transportation hubs.
For Winston, such interactions make the commitment worthwhile. “I like to fool with them, because it makes them feel good and they stop and smile,” he said.
As airlines continue cutting expenses, they are increasingly dependent on Winston, and retirees like him, to assist customers.
“Airline personnel are helpful ... but they can’t sometimes take the time as Travelers Aid does. We have the time to do the one-on-one stuff,” said volunteer Tom Motz.
Winston and Motz are among the Kennedy program’s 83 participants. Although no Travelers Aid program exists at LaGuardia Airport, the two are among the 2,600 Travelers Aid volunteers at 28 airports throughout the country. Many at Kennedy International work two four-hour shifts a week, said Jane Mrosko, the program’s director.
Of her volunteers, she said: “They feel good helping someone, and the gratification is usually instant. Whoever asks the question and gets the answer usually says ‘Thank you so much,’ or there’s some kind of positive exchange.”
Although some teenagers and men and women in their 20s give their time each week, Mrosko said that most volunteers are senior citizens. For them, donning the program’s blazer and informing people brings a sense of pride and accomplishment.
“When I can help someone, when I clarify a situation, that’s nice,” said volunteer Mildred Jervis, a retiree now in her fifth year with Travelers Aid.
Jervis interviewed for a volunteer position five years ago but almost quit soon after her acceptance because of her poor hearing. But she soon grew more comfortable at her station after slowing down and leaning toward travelers when listening to their questions. Although the pace at the airport picks up during the holiday season and over the summer, Jervis says: “I love it. It doesn’t stress me out. I’m retired. I have nothing but time on my hands.”
While many program volunteers, like Jervis, live in Jamaica, others live in other communities throughout the borough, such as Rockaway, Jackson Heights, Whitestone and Fresh Meadows. Still more live in Howard Beach, where residents regularly complain about the noise and air pollution from airplanes overhead.
Lorraine Durst, a Travelers Aid volunteer from Howard Beach, said that just because the airport creates quality-of-life issues does not make its travelers any less deserving of her help. “The airport is a necessary part of our existence. You need to come and go, this is the way to do it,” she said. “You’re helping people and meeting people and knowing that you’re instrumental in making things easier for them,” Durst added.
Often making things easier for travelers entails more than simply pointing them in the direction of the nearest escalator or rest room. Motz, who will begin training to counsel recovering drug and alcohol abusers soon, recalled an instance in his year with Travelers Aid when he helped a woman track down her brother who was supposed to pick her up after she touched down from London. Unbeknownst to the woman, her brother collapsed earlier that day and was rushed to Beth Israel Hospital in Manhattan.
Mrosko said that sometimes penniless women from the Dominican Republic or Puetro Rico come to Travelers Aid desks at Kennedy after fleeing abusive spouses in their countries. Mrosko tries to make such women feel as comfortable and relaxed as possible until the authorities to whom she refers them can step in. “That’s what Travelers Aid has always been about — helping distressed travelers,” she said.
©Queens Chronicle 2007
