If you’ve ever thought about volunteering with SPLC – now is the time!
Whether you are retired or are a student looking to develop and sharpen your skill set, volunteering with SPLC is a chance to connect with our community, meet new people and share your skills. And of course, you will be helping to make a difference in our community of seniors.
One volunteer, Sophie Corrales, who helps with SPLC’s Volunteer from Home Project, describes volunteer work as having a boomerang effect. Not only does it support the community, but it benefits the volunteer as well.
“As volunteers, we are to think less of ourselves but more of others,” she said. “We are to empty ourselves for someone else’s benefit. When we make someone feel good, it’s like a boomerang. It will bounce back on us.”
Another volunteer, Hari Ramaraju, supports the Senior Active Living Centre.
“I know that it has been a very difficult past few years for all of us,” he said. “I admire volunteers here for their willingness to look past themselves during these troubling times and recognize seniors who were hit the hardest by the pandemic – and donate their time, energy and efforts to help out where they can.”
As a volunteer program assistant, Hari teaches seniors how to use technology, organizes weekly recreational events such as Bingo nights and sets up 1-on-1 conversations with seniors to alleviate their loneliness and support their mental health.
Volunteers, like Hari and Sophie, support a wide variety of programs and services from Active Living to Facilities and Health Promotions. Throughout the pandemic volunteers have supported SPLC in different ways, helping to keep our community connected and active by ensuring that some of our recreation programs were still maintained.
Many volunteers helped seniors with their technology needs, providing support in Cantonese, English, Greek, Korean, Mandarin and Tamil. This has been key to helping more seniors embrace technology and maintain their connections with SPLC.
SPLC is thankful to all volunteers who remain dedicated to supporting our community.
We are always looking to build our community and welcome new volunteers to our team. By becoming part of our team, you will help ensure our vital programs continue to be available for seniors.