Senior Companions

Get involved. Join Senior Companions today!

Meet new people and make new friends. Stay active and involved. Enjoy that good feeling of giving to your community.
 
Senior Companions are volunteers 55 and over who provide assistance and friendship to seniors who have difficulty with daily living tasks. Volunteers help to keep seniors independent longer and provide assistance to family caregivers.

Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, the SCP volunteers are limited with how they can continue to provide volunteer service to their peers. The volunteers would like to be able to reach out and talk with their peers, and share their compassion,  empathy and hope in this very confusing and isoloating time. We are in the process  of providing friendly-re-assuring weekly phone calls to chat, check in, and provide comfort and care. If you or a family member/friend are interested in receiving a weekly phone call please contact Joy at jrehfeld@fscm.org or 508.425.9187. Families and caregivers have the reassurance of knowing that someone will be checking on their loved ones on a regularly scheduled basis.
 
When you volunteer, you’re not just helping others—you’re helping yourself. Volunteering leads to new discoveries and new friends. Plus, studies show that volunteering helps you live longer and promotes a positive outlook on life.

Client Services

• The service Senior Companions provide is free of charge to their clients.
• Clients served may be homebound adults with physical, cognitive, mental or emotional impairments, Veterans, patients recently discharged from hospitals or rehab facilities, people living with Alzheimer’s Disease or dementia, and respite services.
• Senior Companion Volunteers provide companionship, socialization, and encouragement, social and emotional support, and recreational activities such as playing games or encouraging hobbies, light meal preparation, reading, taking walks, visiting friends, and transporting and escorting clients to/from medical appointments.
• The volunteers provide two to three hours a week, working one-on-one on a regular basis, building relationships and lessening isolation.
• We currently work with 12 agencies throughout Worcester County that assign Senior Companions to their clientele.

Benefits of Volunteering

• If income eligible, Senior Companion Volunteers may receive a non-taxable hourly stipend. This stipend does not affect any other services you may receive such as housing, fuel assistance, SNAP benefits and/or social security.
• Stipend eligible volunteers receive paid personal, vacation and sick time, along with 10 paid holidays per year.
• Meal and transportation reimbursement.
• Specialized training focused on topics of importance for the elders that they visit and for themselves.
• The opportunity to get out and contribute to the community.
• Meet new people and make new friends.
• Yearly recognition events.
• Stay active and involved: Studies show that being a volunteer improves people’s health and longevity.
• Build Self-Confidence.
• Good feeling of contributing to your community and showing you care.

About Senior Companions

Seniors Thiving & Improving Communities

Volunteers Help Make Independence a Reality

Senior Companions are volunteers 55 years of age and older who devote 5 – 40 hours per week providing companionship and assistance to frail, often isolated, elders in the community.

Senior Companions also provide assistance and companionship for individuals in Adult Day Health Centers, and Rehabilitation Facilities. The Senior Companion Volunteers can assist with providing respite services for family caregivers who may need a break from their caregiving responsibilities.

The Program provides our senior volunteers with a meaningful volunteer experience and other benefits which include reimbursement for travel and meal expenses, an income eligible tax-free stipend, annual recognition, ongoing training, and networking opportunities.

“It is so nice to have someone visit me and see how I’m doing.  I feel safer knowing someone is looking out for me.”