Top 20 Volunteer Opportunities in Franklin County for 2015

 

1. OHIO Grassroots Alzheimer's Project (GAP) - this is a new organization and meetings are held at The Worthington Retirement Community in Gahanna every other month. Call 614-800-5550 for  meeting details. Learn more about their vision & mission here.
2. Military Appreciation Follow this link for details and direction.
3. American Red Cross Call the American Red Cross of Greater Columbus at 614-253-2740  ext 2355 or Follow this link for national details and direction.
4. RSVP This is the nation's largest volunteer organization for seniors 55 + and specializes in matching seniors with volunteer opportunities that tap individual talents and passions.  Follow this link to learn more.
5. The Salvation Army Follow this link for details and direction.
6. Catholic Social Services Friendly Visiting Program Volunteer to visit a senior experiencing loneliness and social isolation in Franklin County.  Visit this link to learn more.    
7. Hospice Organizations  Volunteer at any local hospice including Mount Carmel Hospice.
8. LifeCare Alliance  Volunteer opportunities are endless with this incredible local organization including delivering Meals on Wheels to local homebound seniors. Visit their website for details.
9. Mid Ohio Food Bank Help fight hunger by volunteering today.  Follow this link to learn more.
10. Volunteers of America/ Greater Ohio Volunteer to help the less fortunate today.  Follow this link to learn more.
11. COLUMBUS COALITION for the HOMELESS Volunteer to fight homelessness in our city.  Follow this link to learn more.
12. Good Neighbor Picnic 2014 Volunteer to participate in organization for 2014 effort to provide a day of family fun for the homeless in our city.  Visit their website to learn more.


13. Volunteer Guardian Program Volunteer to be a guardian to a senior.  Free training and supervision offered through COAAA.  Follow this link to learn more.
14. Ohio Department of Aging Volunteer to help seniors through COAAA - Central Ohio Area Agency on Aging at 1-800-589-7277 Follow this link to learn more.
15. Hands On Central Ohio Foster Grandparent Program Volunteer to mentor a child in need.  Call 614-221-6766 or Follow this link to learn more.
16. Ohio Historical Society Volunteer to help preserve our state's history.  Follow this link to learn more.
17. Employment for Seniors  Volunteer to help other seniors find employment.  Call 614-863-1219 or Follow this link to learn more.
18. Columbus Metropolitan Libraries Volunteer opportunities range from clerical duties to participation in the HomeworkHelpCenters where you can tutor children. Call 614-849-1055 or Follow this link to learn more.
19. PAWS Ohio: Public Animal Welfare Society Volunteer to love a pet through adoption, fostering or other agency duties.  Follow this link to learn more.
20. VolunteerMatch.org   For a list of over 400 local individual volunteer opportunities. Follow this link now!

Remember to listen to Senior Agenda for local opportunities through the year. As I often say on the radio program, you don't have to go it alone!!! 

Rhinestone Cowboy Making Us Witnesses to the Truth about Alzheimer's

Glen Campbell's willingness to be a poster child for Alzheimer's Disease makes him a true American/Alzheimer's hero. Reports indicate that his health is now rapidly declining and he is living out his final days in an Alzheimer's nursing home in Nashville "mumbling incoherently" and unable to recognize friends & family.  What's worse?  It will get worse.  Each new day will bring new challenges and losses.  Each new day will bring new anxiety.  Each new day will be a new heartache - for Campbell and his family.  That's Alzheimer's!

Campbell's diagnosis was announced in 2011.  A farewell tour was scheduled for 2012 while the legendary singer/songwriter could still remember the words to his hit songs. He released his final song entitled  "I'm Not Gonna Miss You" last week and a documentary, Glen Campbell: I'll Be Me, will be released on Oct 24.  The documentary focuses on his final tour and fight against Alzheimer's.

Alzheimer's kills and the prognosis is epidemic.  According to the Alzheimer's Association 2014 Alzheimer's Fact and Figures Reports Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, every 67 seconds someone develops Alzheimer's in the United States. To add insult to injury, studies indicate that Alzheimer's deaths are vastly under-reported which results in a false sense of security and under-funding. Research shows that Alzheimer's was the underlying cause in 500,000 deaths  in the United States in 2010, a figure close to six times the estimate from the Centers for Disease Control.  In other words, in just one year, Alzheimer's killed nearly as many as AIDS - responsible for 636,000 deaths in the United States - had taken in more than three decades.  (Alzheimer's, a Neglected Epidemic. May 2014) 

We salute Campbell!  In the coming days we will see more and more cases of Alzheimer's & dementia.  Today we need more heroes like the courageous Mr. Glen Campbell.  He may not be able to miss us, but we will certainly miss him.  In the meantime, our thoughts and prayers are with our hero and his family.