It’s a wrap: Chesed Corps volunteers make sandwich wraps
for the Ronald McDonald House.

out. She said that seeing the vol-
unteers in action, she is often
unsure who gets more out of it,
“the folks we are helping or our
folks themselves. They often for-
get their own concerns as they
focus on someone else’s needs.”
Chesed Corps recently re-
ceived two national awards for
its work, one from the Associ-
ation of Jewish Aging Services
and another from Partners in
Senior Life.

They are not alone in their
activity. In Philadelphia, Jew-
ish Family and Children’s Ser-
vice of Greater Philadelphia
(267-256-2082) offers such an
option as well.

It can be called “the service
without a name,” joked Robin
Henkin, supervisor of volunteer
service at JFCS.

But their aim is a serious one
— helping those elderly who
need a little help with getting
on in life. The volunteers go in-
to the homes of those seeking a
boost, “assist them with trans-
portation, companionship, pa-
per work, helping them pack
when they have to move,” Hen-
kin said of the program made up
of volunteers of a variety of ages
but with many retired seniors —
more than 60 who are age 65 and
older. They, in turn, provide di-
rect assistance to 125 older adult
clients, she said.

In Northwest Baltimore,
older residents of an entire
neighborhood are giving back
through a supported communi-
ty network, which was launched
by Comprehensive Housing As-
sistance, Inc., in March 2013.

According to program di-
rector Risyl Edelman, North-
west Neighbors Connecting is a
grassroots, membership-based
model in which services are pro-
vided to seniors by other senior
members, volunteers and vet-
ted vendors. It gives the area’s
aging population the practical
means and confidence to live in-
JEWISHEXPONENT.COM dependently and remain in their
homes and community.

The organization was creat-
ed after a 2010 Jewish commu-
nity study revealed the 85-years-
and-older population increased
by 166 percent since 1999, and
that 40 percent of Baltimore
Jewish seniors over 65 who are
living alone are in poor or fair
health. Edelman said members are
interviewed to learn what skills
they can “easily and happily”
share with others, and to deter-
mine any needs they have.

“After they sign up, we plug
them in,” said Edelman. “While
our vision is to assist people to
remain in their homes for as
long as possible, our work is to
get them out of their house as
much as possible.”
Currently, there are more
than 170 members of the Neigh-
bors program and another 70
people involved with the ini-
tiative in some way. The oldest
volunteer is 92. Transportation
and technology assistance are
among the top volunteer servic-
es provided.

In Florida, older adults and ba-
by boomer volunteers are trained
to function as liaisons, resource
specialists, peer counselors and
agency envoys in their own gated
communities through the Ferd
and Gladys Alpert Jewish Fami-
ly and Children Services agency.

Called “Ambassadors,” the pro-
gram creates a trained network
of seniors who can solve problems
and support their frail neighbors.

Some 13,000 elderly people
live in West Palm Beach retire-
ment communities, and as ma-
ny as 70 percent of the area’s
over-65 community is Jewish.

“This is civic engagement
at the basic level,” said Jenni
Frumer, the JFCS CEO.

Frumer said ambassadors
are trained by JFCS to identi-
fy neglect, listen and offer em-
pathy in times of crisis and of-
fer personal planning advice to
their peers. The volunteers cre-
ated their own end-of-life plan-
ning guide, which they distrib-
ute throughout their retirement
communities. They also write and act out
skits at area synagogues and
other venues, educating seniors
about matters such as the need
to wear their hearing aids, to re-
member to put their emergency
alert buttons on in the morning,
and to improve dialogue with
their adult children.

“Our older adults can still
teach us how to make the world
a better place,” said Cedar Vil-
lage’s Elliot. “Their example of
commitment and volunteerism
speaks volumes about Jewish
values and our obligation to
help others.”
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