Wayne County welcomes Senior Corps

Senior Corps is a network of national service programs for Americans 55 years or older, made up of three primary programs that each take a different approach to improving lives and fostering civic engagement.

Senior Corps volunteers commit their time to address critical community needs including academic tutoring and mentoring, elderly care, disaster-relief support and more.

The Corporation for National and Community Service, the federal agency that leads service, volunteering and grant-making efforts in the U.S., helps millions of Americans improve their lives and the lives of their fellow citizens through service, working hand in hand with local partners to tap the ingenuity and can-do spirit to tackle the country’s most pressing challenges through AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, the Social Innovation Fund, the Volunteer Generation Fund and more.

CNCS houses three federal programs that fall under Senior Corps: Foster Grandparents, Senior Companions and RSVP.

Family and Community Services Inc. in Ravenna sponsors RSVP programs in 19 counties in Ohio including Ashtabula, Columbiana, Crawford, Marion, Morrow, Huron, Seneca, Wyandot, Jefferson, Geauga, Greene, Montgomery, Franklin, Delaware, Mahoning, Trumbull, Portage, Stark and now Wayne.

By partnering with volunteer stations, nonprofits, schools and more that align with the National Performance Measures including Healthy Futures, which provides companionship and transportation services to the senior population, education, capacity building and other community priorities, the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program or RSVP is one of the largest volunteer networks in the nation for people age 55 and older. Volunteers are placed in local nonprofit, government agencies and schools.

They use the skills and talents learned over the years and develop new ones while serving in a variety of volunteer activities within communities.

RSVP volunteers choose when, where and how often they want to serve with commitments ranging from a few hours to 40 hours per week, or episodically if that is what they prefer.

There is no time requirement to serve. Volunteers receive preservice orientation from their RSVP coordinator, training from the organization where they will serve, mileage reimbursement if providing transportation for seniors and supplemental insurance for all volunteers while serving. RSVP volunteers do not receive monetary incentives.

Last year in Ohio, RSVP volunteers strengthened the impact of 500 organizations across the state.

Service opportunities are as diverse as the communities in which volunteers serve and may include but are not limited to:

• Transporting disabled individuals and seniors to medical appointments or the grocery store for life-sustaining appointments.

• Providing food to the hungry through meal-delivery services and helping in food pantries and soup kitchens.

• Assisting the disabled and seniors with prescription and medical referrals and in home companionship.

• Providing capacity building for nonprofit organizations.

• Tutoring and mentoring disadvantaged or disabled youth in school mentoring programs, after-school programs and more to help increase attendance and improve academic performance.

• Providing assistance to veterans.

• Providing disaster-relief services.

• Volunteering during national days of service and remembrance.

“I am excited to be the program coordinator for RSVP of Wayne and to see it become successful,” Vikki Gehring said. “I am currently in the process of getting the program more exposure in the communities in Wayne County.”

Gehring said she is meeting with local nonprofits to partner with so she can then recruit volunteers to serve at partnering agencies. “I am also heavily involved with finding out what Wayne County’s needs are in each community and what answers are being provided to resolve these issues. We want to help meet those needs with our volunteers, if at all possible,” she said.

If you are a local nonprofit needing volunteers or are 55 or older and looking to give back to the community through volunteerism, call Gehring at 330-845-4500 or email vgehring@fcsohio.org.