Volunteering acts as a powerful catalyst for human connection by creating opportunities for individuals to come together for a common purpose. This shared activity naturally fosters interaction, empathy, and understanding.
The Neighbor Helping Neighbor program allows volunteers to be part of a care team that offers wrap-around support to an individual to help maintain their independence. The support team’s assistance can either be provided on a one-time basis, be offered episodically, or be coordinated on an ongoing basis.
Life can be a turbulent journey, filled with triumphs and challenges alike. While individual resilience is important, it is widely acknowledged that no one thrives in isolation. The adage "it takes a village" encapsulates this truth perfectly: we all need a community, a network of support, to navigate the complexities of life. The following story illustrates how you can become a vital part of someone's "village", offering the kind of compassionate and practical assistance that strengthens resilience and fosters well-being.
When Fran found herself in the hospital, she never expected to have to undergo three surgeries and then spend several weeks in rehab. Thankfully, with the comforting support of her Neighbor Helping Neighbor volunteers, Linda and Coco, Fran was able to connect with them and share the many challenges of hospital and rehab life. After many weeks, Fran was finally ready to return home. Yet she never anticipated that just getting home would turn into such a struggle! With no family to help, Fran first had to fight for a ride home. Although Fran was ultimately granted one, she was informed that the ride would only take her to the curb of her home, but she would not be able to use the walker she had received at the rehab during the journey home because she already owned one. The problem was the walker she had was upstairs in her second-floor apartment. Once her volunteer, Coco, learned about this, she frantically reached out to the Volunteer program staff at AOA help. This sets the gears in motion.
With a few calls, we were able to secure another Neighbor Helping Neighbor volunteer named Marie, who was willing to wait for Fran to arrive at the drop-off location outside her apartment building sometime between 10:45 and 11 am. Marie was able to help Fran navigate the 20 stairs up to her second-floor apartment, where she had lived for over 30 years. Shortly thereafter, another volunteer kindly arrived to buy some essential food items for Fran as her kitchen had not been stocked for several weeks. Subsequently, Coco and Linda followed up with Fran to check in and see how she was doing, but also to determine if there were other needs with which they could help. Each of these acts of kindness only took minutes, and yet they made it possible for Fran to get home, and get settled in her home with dignity. Fran was so thankful, and the entire care team was thrilled that they could help.