Groups suffer as volunteers stay home
Seniors the backbone of many groups but they are being encouraged to stay home
Supporting seniors has been some of the most fulfilling work Bob Anderson has done with the Rotary Club of Saskatoon.
“We make lifelong friends in this group. I found kindred spirits in Rotary,” said Anderson, a member for 33 years and president of Rotary Club of Saskatoon North. “We’ve gotten together and played in bands over the years, including for seniors — it’s brought me a lot of personal joy.”
The most prolific members of Canada’s volunteer workforce are older adults like Anderson. Of the 12.7 million Canadians who volunteer every year, adults 55 and up dedicate an average of 200 hours each; people between the ages of 65 and 74 spend the most time volunteering.
Rotary’s work in the community hinges on its older adult volunteers; about half of the club’s 130 members in Saskatoon are 65 and older.
But COVID-19 has led to many of those volunteers remaining homebound in order to protect themselves from the virus. While Saskatchewan approaches the second phase of its reopening plan on June 8, Premier Scott Moe has encouraged vulnerable groups like seniors to remain inside if possible.
Nearly 95 per cent of the Saskatoon Council on Aging’s senior volunteer force is stuck inside in recent months; staff have realized the importance of adapting how the organization provides support.
“It’s a little bit of a cliché, but they’re priceless. Like many organizations, we couldn’t do most of what we do without the work of volunteers,” said Virginia Dakiniewich, communications coordinator for the SCOA. “They provide expertise in basically every, every facet of what we do.”
Aside from creating an online library and phone line, two volunteers have been in regular contact with the organization’s Century Club for people over 90, to reduce social isolation.
The organization aims to expand on that approach to connecting, teaming up with other community organizations to start a telephone buddy project where older adults would receive weekly phone calls.
“There’s always been a need for it because there’s still many older adults that can’t access the internet or aren’t comfortable using it,” Dakiniewich said. “The only contact that they have is over the phone; it’s like a lifeline for them. So when COVID-19 hit, it highlighted that need even more.”
Anderson recently sent members a video highlighting the club’s volunteer work, to remind them of all of the good they can do in more certain times.
For the time being, the Rotary club is planning to open its community garden for volunteers to tend while respecting social distancing.
“The message is it’s not all just about hunkering down behind closed doors,” he said. “There’s still many things that we can do, and we can be proud of what we have accomplished.”