October 23, 2023
An AHS volunteer since the age of seven, country music artist, Devin Cooper, 26, continues to perform for residents at AHS facilities across Alberta. He draws inspiration from two decades spent alongside his mom, who’s also a nurse. Here, he’s shown at a recent gig in Toronto. Photo courtesy of Gustavo Gonzalez.
Story by Jonathan Koch | Photo by Gustavo Gonzalez
OLDS — Devin Cooper’s love of motorcycles and music has given him many good things, both on and off the stage.
An award-winning country music artist, Cooper also draws inspiration from two decades spent alongside his mom as a volunteer with Alberta Health Services (AHS).
Growing up in Innisfail, Cooper spent a lot of time in his father’s custom motorcycle shop, watching and helping him build motorcycles and hot rods.
Curious by nature, he soon asked his mom, Ronda, questions about her job as a long-term care nurse at Olds Hospital and Care Centre.
“I knew everything that my dad does on a day-to-day basis at work, but my mom's a nurse, so what does that involve?” Cooper recalls. “My mom said, ‘well, you could come volunteer at work one day if you wanted’.”
So, at age seven, Cooper became an AHS volunteer, tagging along with his mom to continuing care.
Devin felt right at home with the mostly elderly residents, having spent a lot of time with his grandparents and great grandparents, including a great grandpa who had Alzheimer's and dementia.
“My mom had picked out a few residents who would be good for me to engage with, and it was just like I was sitting there having a game of cards with my grandparents,” Cooper adds.
Cooper also took up guitar at age seven, and when he was about 10, Ronda suggested he come play for one of the residents — a young non-verbal brain-injury patient and rock music fan — who was resting quietly in his wheelchair when they arrived.
“Devin came in with his little electric guitar and a little amp and asked me ‘What do I do?’,” Ronda remembers. “I said ‘play some Metallica, this was one of his favourite bands’. So, he started playing — and this young man's eyes opened wide.”
The transformation was immediate, Devin recalls.
“He had a big smile, and he was laughing and having a great time. That was kind of the first time I saw how music had such an impact on people.”
Devin later began singing to residents, again witnessing how his music moved those with dementia.
“I started playing this Johnny Cash song and they started clapping. Their eyes and faces lit up. They started singing along with the lyrics — and the nurses were shocked because they'd never seen that kind of response before,” he says.
Kevin Land, AHS volunteer coordinator at Olds Hospital, says Cooper’s music connects with the residents in a special way.
“Devin comes and he plays some of his songs, and some of the old classics, and I think people just love hearing the singing and the playing and that live performance,” says Land. “They're engaged, it wakes their soul. It's just amazing to be a part of it.”
Twenty years later, Devin continues to volunteer, performing at AHS facilities around central and southern Alberta.
In 2019, he melded his love of motorcycles and music with his passion for helping people, creating Ride to Remember — a motorcycle ride, charity-event fundraiser, and live concert in support of the Alzheimer Society of Calgary — which raised more than $40,000 for Alzheimer’s research this year.
Ronda Cooper says she’s proud of all her son has accomplished.
“How many 26-year-olds volunteer? How many 10-year-olds volunteer? So, to continue to volunteer to this day — and to want to give that time back — it is really special.”
Learn more about AHS volunteer resources and how to volunteer.
