Volunteers respond to call for help for seniors
Delivery of groceries and prescriptions among greatest needs
With seniors being a highrisk group susceptible to the novel coronavirus, many in the community are feeling vulnerable and fearful.
Older adults may need extra help right now, especially if they are isolated without family connections, or their community supports are not physically open to them.
Seniors organizations say the predominant needs they are seeing right now are help with groceries, personal care items such as toiletries, pet supplies and prescription pickups.
“A lot of them hunkered down the first few weeks and had supplies to get through, but the last couple of weeks, we’re seeing everyone coming out of the woodwork and experiencing a pretty strong sense of desperation. Nobody was expecting it to go on for such a long time, and that’s certainly contributing,” says Annastasia Stevens with the Calgary Seniors’ Resource Society.
The society has had an influx of new volunteers to help take on grocery shopping, meal delivery, prescription pickup and making friendly check-in phone calls. They’ve also started a “care post” program for people to send “happy mail” to seniors.
Many seniors have increased anxiety around their health and medical care, and some have been unable to get to medical appointments or cancer treatments, says Stevens. Many have families who are unable to help as much due to home-schooling their children, struggling with job loss or needing to isolate.
There are numerous ways communities can help seniors, Stevens says. Some can be surprisingly simple, such as moving bins on collection days for those with mobility or health limitations.
Consider leaving care packages or baking on a senior’s doorstep, or make a project of a colourful chalk mural on their walkway. Pop over and wave or chat through the window at a safe distance. Give them your phone number.
They’ll feel less alone and may feel more comfortable asking when they need help, says Stevens.
“Sometimes seniors are hesitant to ask for help. We get a lot of, ‘I’m fine,’ and we can see they are clearly not. Help a senior in a nonaggressive way, like with a friendly check-in. That soft approach is important,” she says.
Volunteer recruitment for the society has been going steady over the past weeks. More than 300 new volunteers have signed on, and there are hundreds more applicants.
“As Calgarians do, they’ve been rising to the challenge in a crisis. It’s really amazing to see people rise to action through adversity,” Stevens says.
The Kerby Centre is another seniors’ resource that normally sees hundreds of people accessing its programs and services on site. The centre is closed now, with staff members reallocated to the organization’s grocery and medication delivery program. The need for the delivery program has been so large the centre has done away with the income cut-off requirement, and is offering the service to any senior in need.
“Right now we are seeing almost triple the volume we would typically see in a given month,” says Larry Mathieson, chief executive officer of the Kerby Centre.
Volunteers also make regular check-in calls to seniors for social chats and to ask if there is anything they need. The Kerby Centre’s elder abuse shelter is still in operation, following all physical distancing and cleanliness protocols.
The centre has been receiving a steady flow of applications from volunteers, but it would welcome more. Anyone interested in helping is asked to call 403-705-3177. There is also an increased need for monetary donations, as well as hand sanitizer and gloves.
Mathieson says he is heartened by how people have reached out to help during the pandemic.
“I’ve worked in the nonprofit sector for a long time, and this is reminiscent of the flood or the fires, and what never ceases to amaze me is how generous Calgarians are. We have had tremendous support helping seniors.”