“From young to old and everyone in between, The Senior Source is always in need of some great volunteers. People turn to us for help with job searches, nursing home advocacy, money management and general aging issues, so our volunteer opportunities run the gambit. What makes it great is that volunteers have plenty of different types of experiences to choose from. Here are some of the volunteers we need right now:
“Friendly Visitors – These volunteers make a positive impact in the lives of older adults who live in nursing homes or assisted living facilities in Dallas County. Approximately 50 percent of residents never have visitors, but that’s where our volunteers come in. Friendly Visitors help combat the isolation and loneliness that is so prevalent in nursing homes by visiting and interacting with residents, helping out with and hosting fun group activities such as games, arts/crafts, parties, music/dance troupes, cooking demonstrations, or landscaping and beautification projects. Friendly Visitors can volunteer during the day or early evening, on weekdays or weekends.
“Money Management – As people age, their ability to work with numbers and their finances may decline. The Senior Source needs trained volunteers to work just a few hours a month to help deliver money management services to those who need [it]. Volunteers will help with budgeting, balancing checkbooks and accessing community resources to help stretch seniors’ meager incomes.
“VIP Volunteers – When an older adult needs help managing personal affairs, the courts often will appoint The Senior Source as Guardian. VIP Volunteers play an important role in helping us to serve these clients. Through regular visits, our volunteers provide much needed social interaction and improve the quality of life for this very vulnerable population. We need volunteers for reading, reminiscing, sharing pictures and vacation memories or just sharing a meal. You’ll receive initial and on-going training and staff support is available around the clock.
“RSVP Volunteers – If you are an older adult looking to get involved, look no further. This is the clearinghouse for volunteer activities for individuals 50 and older. We work with hundreds of local organizations to be able to place volunteers in their specific areas of interest. Some of the projects include helping make our community “green” through Boomer Green Teams projects (tree plantings and changing out energy inefficient light bulbs), mentoring children with special needs one hour a week at school or assisting our area’s non-profits to fulfill their missions.
“Nursing Home Ombudsmen – Certified volunteer ombudsmen advocate on behalf of frail, elderly nursing home and assisted living residents by ensuring that their rights are protected and working to resolve complaints on their behalf. Our volunteer ombudsmen make regular, unannounced visits to the facilities and go room-to-room talking with the residents about their care. Often, they may be the only person outside of the facility staff who interacts with the residents. Ombudsmen serve as an extra set of eyes and ears, and often as the voice, for residents who are unable or afraid to speak up about their care.
“Employee & Group Activities – If you are looking for a team building exercise for your co-workers this is a great fit. You can collect new items for frail, low-income older adults by holding a canned food drive or collecting socks or personal care items. The Senior Source will give you the steps to host the drive and make sure that the collected items are distributed to seniors in need [through]out the community.
“ABOUT THE SENIOR SOURCE — Celebrating 50 years, The Senior Source, a United Way service provider, has served greater Dallas as the go-to nonprofit for aging services since 1961. The organization assists older adults at all income levels from the most active to the very frail. People turn to The Senior Source for help with job searches, nursing home advocacy, money management, volunteer opportunities and counseling on any aging issue. For more information, contact The Senior Source at 214.823.5700 or visit www.theseniorsource.org.”
–Betty Houser, Director of Communications