With help from volunteers, seniors in region live alone longer

An open house for the volunteer service program will be Nov. 6 in Canfield.
& lt;a href=mailto:jgoodwin@vindy.com & gt;By JOHN W. GOODWIN JR & lt;/a & gt;.
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Several times a month 73-year-old Charles Prince drives from his home in Warren to Youngstown to take a retired South Side woman to doctor visits.
The 71-year-old Granite Street woman, who lives alone and did not want to be named, is not a relative or close friend to Prince. In fact, the two had never met before the trips to the doctor's office began a few months ago. They are both participants in the Volunteer Service to Seniors program sponsored by AARP Ohio and Faith in Action.
The program recruits seniors and other volunteers to help seniors who are less capable of performing certain tasks.
Rebecca Wheeler-Grieve, AARP Ohio community organizer, said several surveys have shown that older adults wish to continue living in their own homes, even as it becomes increasingly difficult for them to do so. She said an AARP survey showed 16 million Americans over age 55 have trouble performing daily tasks.
Some of those individuals, said Wheeler-Grieve, can get help from family and friends, but about half need help performing daily activities from an outside source.
The Volunteer Service to Seniors program pairs volunteers with older adults to assist in household chores, yardwork, rides to the store or doctor's office, or just an occasional phone call or visit.
"We, the AARP and Faith in Action, want a society where everyone can look forward to the same level of comfort or high quality life in their older years," she said. "This can certainly go a long way in helping."
Service program
Maureen Drummond, program director at the Volunteer Services Agency, said there are more than 80 volunteers in the program helping more than 300 individuals. The volunteers range in age from 23 to 78, but most are over 55, she said.
Volunteers are given a background check, an initial interview and training courses, and then are paired with a waiting individual. An open house dealing with the Volunteer Service to Seniors program will be from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. Nov. 6 at the Ursuline Center on Shields Road in Canfield.
Donna Bruno, who uses a number of methods to recruit volunteers for the program, said often people will come to her saying they are bored and want to spend their spare time helping someone else. She said the experience is rewarding for both the volunteer and program participant.
For Prince, knowing that he has helped someone in need is all the compensation expected.
"I love to help people," he said. "When people have to go to the doctor or go to the store and can't make it, I don't mind helping."
For the 71-year-old Granite Street participant, Prince's love of helping others is greatly appreciated. She said stress about finding rides to the doctor's office would often raise her blood pressure to unusual levels before she even reached the doctor's office. With Prince behind the wheel, that stress has been relieved.
& lt;a href=mailto:jgoodwin@vindy.com & gt;jgoodwin@vindy.com & lt;/a & gt;