By Clyde Noel

Community Services Agency volunteer Louise Vivian, left, takes Harry King shopping once a week. Vivian has been helping King for the past year, along with other area seniors in need of some assistance, through the CSA’s Senior Volunteer Outreach Program.

Town Crier Correspondent

CSA Outreach Program helps seniors stay independent and self sufficient

Every Tuesday, Louise Vivian volunteers at the Community Services Agency (CSA). She has escorted a frail Los Altos senior to the doctor for years and now takes a Mountain View senior to do his grocery shopping weekly. Vivian, a Los Altos senior, has been helping disabled seniors in CSA’s Senior Volunteer Outreach Program more than 10 years.

“I started doing this when they had the ‘Brown Bag Floater’ program for the disabled who couldn’t get to the senior center and wanted people to help.” Vivian said.

“We need people like Vivian to help in our Senior Volunteer Outreach Program because we average about 110 services to seniors every month and don’t have enough volunteers,” said Catherine Chavez, CSA outreach coordinator. “Our volunteers provide companionship for isolated seniors. Many who live in Los Altos and Los Altos Hills need assistance because their children cannot take care of them since they live out of the area.”

A recent survey for Northern California hospitals by a professional services team reported that the largest group of seniors aged 60 and up in Santa Clara County live between Sunnyvale and Palo Alto.

By 2010, the fastest growing segment of the population will be 85 and over.

“With that trend facing us, a lot of seniors will be outliving their children, or the children will not be in a position to help their parents,” Chavez said.

The goal of the outreach program is to enable seniors in Mountain View, Los Altos and Los Altos Hills to remain in their homes through the support of the volunteer services.

“Our volunteers offer practical services like grocery shopping and going to the bank, but they also offer warm and caring support and companionship for disabled seniors,” Chavez said. “Another volunteer is Todd Fernandez from Mountain View who teaches seniors how to use a computer in their own homes.”

Most of the CSA clients are frail seniors who are not able to use the Santa Clara County Outreach Program because of physical and mental handicaps.

According to Chavez, CSA volunteers go into the doctor’s office and stay with the client until the appointment is over. County Outreach volunteers do not leave their vehicle.

CSA provides other activities for seniors.

The Senior Nutrition program, located at the Mountain View Senior Center, provides subsidized lunches every weekday to clients over the age of 60. In addition to the meals provided to seniors, the lunches offer a time for socializing and education.

More than 250 volunteers work in CSA programs. Senior volunteers are behind the Chefs Who Care programs. In the past year, Chefs Who Care has provided $14,000 to the Senior Nutrition Program also operated by volunteers.

For more information about volunteering at CSA, call 964-4630.