Interfaith Caregivers

The weather-resistant pluck and ingenuity of our citizens in meeting life's challenges, economic or otherwise, is part of what defines the Granite State.

Another is our willingness to look out for each other and one of the ways that takes place is through a program called The Friends Interfaith Caregivers.

A volunteer caregiver visits a woman we’ll call “Jane” weekly. Widowed a few years ago and recovering from the rigors of a recent surgery, she welcomes the help from her volunteer. She sounds almost surprised by how nice she is and appreciates her punctuality. She shows up right on time, she says, on their appointed day and does things for her that helps make it possible to stay in her home of 45 years, with its beautiful views and family memories.

And memories she has aplenty. Living in a generation that has seen changes from driving a horse-drawn sled in the winter to seeing a man walking on the moon, she's raised kids, animals and food here and it's easy to see why she wants to stay.

Founded in 1997, the Interfaith Caregivers Program was established to assist the older adults and persons living with disabilities to remaining living in their homes and communities and to maintain their sense of independence for as long as possible. The program continues today to be a resource for many who do not have adequate familial or financial resources to meet their basic needs but who are often not eligible for state or county funded services.

The type of services that the caregiver volunteers provide is seemingly endless. Sometimes it is help with grocery shopping, household chores or yard work. It could be a ride to a doctor’s appointment or a religious service, or maybe to run some errands. Occasionally a volunteer is needed so a primary caretaker can just wander off for a well-deserved break; other times it's simply a matter of going to visit someone who is shut in.

This past year volunteers assisted 215 individuals, freely rendering 3,837 hours of their time to help their neighbor in need. In total 4,270 acts of kindness were performed, including 3,906 rides and 296 friendly visits. More than fifty one thousand miles were logged, 51,348 to be exact, even with the rising cost of gasoline. -- all accomplished with one full-time staff person and 175 volunteers. (Chart with additional detail on services provided by volunteers - opens in separate window)

Services are offered with out charge to individuals 60 and older living in the Greater Concord area. Generous financial support from local faith communities, the United Way of Merrimack County, community members, and care receivers themselves makes this possible.

The stories told of these services seem to evoke smiles in the telling because it's not at all that unusual for the volunteers to find that their life has been enriched because of their friendship with the person they have volunteered to help. It's a fair bet that it's often something they didn't even know they needed.

There are lots of places for charitable dollars to go these days. This one is right here at home, right now.