Be a friend to someone with memory loss

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Volunteer will have the rewarding experience of working with families in their local community where an individual has some form of dementia or memory loss. Working as part of a team, volunteers will also have the added reward of being supported by other volunteers and having the chance to build friendships.

Hours Required: Flexible; Hours of volunteering are up to individual volunteer. Team works together to create schedule of volunteering. Expectation to meet with Team every six weeks for an hour.

Volunteer Tasks: Volunteer will provide non-medical support to individual with dementia and caregiver(s). Volunteer does not provide direct care. Often support consists of providing respite for the caregiver. Other examples of tasks include: friendly visiting, phone calls, light housework, transportation (optional), and running errands.

Experience/ Skills Required: Volunteer needs no previous experience. One needs only a desire to support a neighbor. Volunteer will be required to attend training prior to volunteering and to complete and submit applicable paperwork including references. Training includes information on Dementia, caregiving, communication strategies, and other resources.

Location: Volunteers will meet every six weeks at a location convenient for the volunteer. Volunteering will be done within the volunteer’s local community.

Supervisor: Volunteer will have ongoing support and guidance from the Volunteer Coordinator of the Alzheimer’s Care Team program at Eddy Alzheimer’s Services (EAS). EAS is located in Cohoes.