Robert J. “Jack” Ewald is the epitome of service.

It all started in World War II, when Ewald was in the U.S. Army’s 115th Infantry Regiment. On June 6, 1944, he was one of 160,000 Allied troops who stormed the beaches of Normandy.

Ewald and his unit fought for nearly two months until he was taken prisoner of war by the Nazi army.

Finally, Ewald and two comrades escaped, hiked 60 miles to the American line and eventually made it home. He worked for the Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Company for 36 years.

But Ewald’s service lately has come in the form of serving patients in the OrthoJoint Center at Sentara Obici Hospital. Every Wednesday, despite the fact he is 92 years of age, he still shows up for this volunteer shift.

Having had his left knee replaced, twice, and having suffered a broken hip a few years ago, Ewald knows a little about the pain the patients at the OrthoJoint Center are experiencing. That makes him the best kind of volunteer, according to Tracey Stallard, the orthopedic patient navigator.

“There’s nothing better for a patient going through the process than having someone that’s been through it,” she said. She was the one who convinced him to start volunteering back in 2012.

Ewald is now a fixture on Wednesdays, helping with tasks the hospital staff don’t have time for and generally cheering everybody up.

We salute Ewald and his fellow volunteers for the important work they do.