Monday, December 18, 2017

Meet the Chore Volunteers - Monday Crew #1!

According to a MetLife/National Alliance for Caregiving report, it is estimated that about 34 million Americans are caregivers at some level for an older parent or other relative—and of that number, 15% live one or more hours away from the care recipient.  Approximately one-third of requests for Chore Service come from relatives of the client’s, who are concerned about the ability of their loved ones to continue living safely in their home and age in place.


 
Mike Silverstein, Paul Siegel, Al White, Mike Cargill make up the Monday, Chore Van #1 crew.


Ms. J  emails:  “Grandpa needs help!  I stumbled across your website while trying to find some extra help for my grandfather.  He is in his 80’s and just returned to his home after a prolonged hospitalization.  He is having a hard time keeping up with simple home maintenance.  My family and I live in Florida, so we aren’t able to be with him all the time.  We noticed that he doesn’t have any smoke alarms in the house.  Can you help? (an appointment was scheduled asap) Thank you so much.  It’s people like your volunteers that really prove there is still some good in the world!”

Learn more about the Chore Program online here.

Monday, December 11, 2017

Meet the Chore Volunteers - Tuesday Van #1 Crew!

Interesting fact:  A nursing home stay costs $75,000-$100,000 per year.  A study by the Weintraub Foundation showed that home repairs help an elderly person live at home for 13 months longer than expected (K. Walker, Baltimore Sun, 2012)



Terry O’Connor, George Ann Muller and Harvey Rappaport are the Tuesday, Chore Van #1 team.


Mrs. C writes:  “I’m sending a B-I-G thank you to your organization and volunteers.  I didn’t know what to expect when I scheduled my repairs, and I was a little apprehensive.  When I saw your team of 3 volunteers with warm smiles and name tags displayed, I immediately felt at ease.  The speed and expertise with which they fixed everything—from a dangerous protruding screw on a doorplate, to installing a lock, to tightening a toilet seat—was most impressive.”

Learn more about the Chore Program online here.

Monday, December 4, 2017

Meet the Chore Volunteers - Nunzio!

For the past 5 years,  Nunzio Garzino has been volunteering for Chore with the Thursday, Chore Van #2 crew.  Prior to his retirement, he was a Senior Vice President/Branch Manager for Prudential Financial, Thompson McKinnon Securities and Wachovia Securities.  His financial career spanned 44 years.  He loves to play golf, and is out on the golf course two or three times a week, sometimes participating in tournaments and club championships.  He considers himself a ‘jack of all trades’ when it comes to handyman skills.  He and his wife also volunteer at their local church. 

“I could say that I volunteer for Chore because it gives me something to do, but the reality is that I enjoy helping other people.  How many times have we received compliments from widows and widowers—I don’t have enough fingers and toes to count them all.  We hear comments from our clients such as: ‘Oh, I only owe $36 for two grab bars installed by Chore?  I called a local handyman and he wanted to charge me $300 for the first grab bar, and $150 more for the second one.  Being of service is what keeps me coming back week after week and year after year.  Plus all the Chore volunteers are great to work with, especially the ones on my Thursday crew.”

Learn more about the Chore Program online here.