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SHEPHERD’S HERALD: Spring 2021 (Volume 7, Issue 2)

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Ride Coordinators Key to the Center’s Program

The Shepherd’s Center is a non-profit corporation established in 2006 primarily to provide free rides for medical care to older adults in McLean, Arlington, and Falls Church. This remains the core mission and it has grown from a handful of volunteer drivers in 2006 to last year’s total of 75, who provided over 2,000 rides to about 100 clients.

The key to providing this service has been the ride coordinators, currently a group of 8 volunteers who manage the program on a daily basis. They rotate weekly shifts, fielding incoming client ride requests and matching them with available volunteer drivers. Over the years close to 100% of the requests have been satisfied by volunteer drivers, although due to the pandemic, last summer it was necessary to supplement the requests with Center-funded taxi service. As our drivers receive their vaccines this Spring they will once again return to full strength and get behind the wheel.

Ride Coordinators

  • Mary Highsmith, Chair
  • Irv Auerbach
  • Denise Augustenborg
  • Beth Caldwell
  • Jan Gordon
  • Michael Lerner
  • Mark Turco
  • Jerry Welch
Read more in the SCMAFC 2021 Spring Newsletter, or click “Download” to download.Download
Micheal Lerner
Michael
Jan Gordon
Jan
Denise Augustenborg
Denise
Mary Highsmith, Chair
Mary

SHEPHERD’S HERALD: Winter 2021 (Volume 7, Issue 1)

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Betty Douglass Retires as Shepherd’s Center Board Chair

It is difficult to say enough about Betty Douglass’ contributions to SCMAFC over her eight years as a volunteer. Like most other volunteers she began as a driver for clients and continues to do so. But by her second year she was asked to join the Board of Directors where she has served until retiring from this role in December. During her years on the Board Betty served in a number of capacities and in her final three as its Chair. Her substantial time investment and work ethic have been recognized and admired by fellow Board members, clients, volunteers, members of community organizations, and by other Shepherd’s Centers.

As Board chair she has worked tirelessly to increase volunteer and client membership, and to improve Board management and organization. Last year Betty led the Center through the Covid-19 pandemic, ensuring that services to clients were able to continue with minimal impact to them and to volunteer drivers. This included for the first time the addition of Center- funded taxi rides for clients and donations of Center-acquired face masks to clients living in the Lewinsville Retirement Residences, Chesterbrook Residences, and The Fallstead, along with all clients and volunteers who requested them.

We will miss Betty’s leadership but are pleased to know that she will continue to play a role in the Center’s activities.

Download Full Shepherd’s Herald Newsletter:

Volume 7 Issue 1 – Winter 2021

In this Issue: Board Chair Betty Douglass Retires; COVID-19 Vaccination Registration; 2020 Ride Statistics; Volunteer Recognition for Suellen Skocki; Bob Schulze is a Featured Volunteer; Updates to Board

SHEPHERD’S HERALD: Fall 2020 (Volume 6, Issue 4)

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Download The Full Shepherd’s Herald Newsletter:

Volume 6 Issue 4 – Fall 2020, or click “Download” to download.Download

In This Issue: COVID-19 Tips; Q3 2020 Ride Statistics; Volunteer Ron Krieger; Medicare Open Enrollment Information; and, Client Marjorie Long

SHEPHERD’S HERALD: Summer 2020 (Volume 6, Issue 3)

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SCMAFC is Busy as the Coronavirus Lingers

Although we hoped in the springtime that the pandemic lockdown would be behind us by summertime, all of us are still coping with this new, unwanted lifestyle. Shepherd’s Center services, thankfully, have been able to continue. We are so grateful for our dedicated drivers, shoppers, and callers!

  • 38 volunteers have continued to provide services to 51 clients during the pandemic (from mid-March to mid-July), providing almost 500 rides or visits.
  • Even after health care providers began scheduling in-office appointments, our drivers were able to fill almost 100% of the ride requests.
  • About a dozen clients who do not feel safe leaving their homes are having groceries brought to them by volunteers.
  • We have had 8 new volunteers enroll during the past 4 months, and they are already busy providing services.
  • About 14 volunteers are calling clients and visiting with them by phone on a regular basis.
  • We have connected almost a dozen clients with Let’s Connect, a local company that is devoted to providing regular telephone check-ins with isolated older adults.

Staying Safe During the Pandemic

Volunteers and clients are reminded of the CDC and Health Department guidelines for keeping safe during the Coronavirus pandemic:

  • Wear a mask when you leave home. SCMAFC has free cloth masks; call 703-506-2199 to request one.
  • Wash your hands thoroughly whenever you touch anything outside your home and use hand sanitizers often.
  • When riding in a car with a non-family member, the passenger should sit in the backseat on the right side to allow social distancing.
  • Drivers are urged to sanitize the portion of the car where clients are sitting before and after a trip.
  • When taking a client to a medical appointment the driver should stay in the car and return at the appointed time for pick-up, without going into the waiting room with the client.
  • Practice social distancing (keeping 6 feet apart) when interacting with others.
  • Minimize trips outside your home and always visit with others outdoors.
  • If you are experiencing any symptoms of the virus, do not request a ride from SCMAFC.

Download The Full Shepherd’s Herald Newsletter:

Volume 6 Issue 3 – Summer 2020, or click “Download” to download.Download

In this issue: 2020 Q2 Ride Statistics; Stew Lingley as Volunteer of the Year for 2019; Food Assistance Resources; Featured Clients; Board of Directors updates; 2019 Donor Lists; Special Election Information

SHEPHERD’S HERALD: Spring 2020 (Volume 6, Issue 2)

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SCMAFC Service Continues During Virus

The COVID-19 pandemic has altered the way our Shepherd’s Center serves our clients. How?

We still drive clients to health-related appointments, though the cancelling of appointments by providers has reduced the number of requests. Many of our faithful volunteers are still willing to provide these critical rides, while following the CDC and county health department guidelines for staying safe.

Our Friendly Visitors are now calling rather than visiting, still keeping in touch with those who ask for periodic check-in phone calls. Let us know if you would like a call or would like to be a caller.

Those clients who rely on SCMAFC for their grocery shopping are being served by Board members and several volunteers who shop during early morning “senior” hours or go to food banks and deliver groceries to our clients.

We have had to suspend taking on new clients during the pandemic, because the home visits required for screening them are no longer possible. As soon as the stay-at-home restrictions are lifted, we will resume accepting new clients.

We continue to accept new volunteers and are providing training by Zoom. Many in our community have stepped forward to help and we are grateful for their willingness to join us.

Our community fundraising provided by local restaurants has had to be largely suspended, with the closing of many.

Board and committee meetings are now held online using Zoom. This technology has been a wonderful learning experience!

Download The Full Shepherd’s Herald Newsletter:

Volume 6 Issue 2 – Spring 2020, or click “Download” to download.Download

In this Issue: Updates on COVID-19 Policies; Q1 2020 Ride Statistics; Free Face Masks Information; Updates to the Board of Directors; Volunteers Recognized for Providing Grocery Stores Trips

SHEPHERD’S HERALD: Spring 2019 (Volume 5, Issue 1)

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Message from the Chair:

You’ve often heard it said that it takes a village to raise a child. Shepherd’s Center chapters all over the country are based on the belief that it also takes a village to grow old. At least to grow old well. As we age we all need a community surrounding us to provide support and happiness. Yet in modern day America many older adults live in isolation. Some of us have never married; some of our spouses and many of our friends have died; some either have no children at all, or they live in Dallas or Tokyo. If you are a client who feels alone, let us know! We have lovely volunteers who are eager to visit or call you on a regular basis— to be a new friend. If you are a volunteer and discover someone who you think would benefit from our Friendly Visitor/Caller program, let our Ride Coordinators know, and they can help connect this client with a volunteer who can visit or call. It’s not healthy to live in isolation without social contacts and the community of others. Help us be a village!

Betty Douglass,
Chairman of the Board

Download The Full Shepherd’s Herald Newsletter:

Volume 5 Issue 1 – Spring 2019, or click “Download” to download.Download

In this Issue: Message from Chairman of the Board; 2018 Ride Statistics; Holiday Party; Tax Preparation Information

SHEPHERD’S HERALD: Fall 2018 (Volume 4, Issue 3)

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Message from the Chair:

A huge advantage of living in Northern Virginia is that there are so many community-based programs and services. It is actually overwhelming to discover all the housing, nutrition, healthcare, transportation, care-giving, legal, financial, educational, and recreational offerings that exist, many of which are specifically designed for older adults. So why do so many of us not take advantage of these services? Mostly because we do not know about them. Or we don’t know how to find out about them.

The Fairfax County Area Agency on Aging for residents of McLean and Falls Church is a good place to start. Their website can be found at https://www.agingcare.com/local/fairfax-county-area-agency-on-aging-fairfax-area-agency-on-aging-va, and their phone number is 703-324-5411.

For Arlington residents, your Area Agency on Aging can be found at https://www.agingcare.com/local/arlington-aaa-arlington-area-agency-on-aging-va and 703-228-1700.

The Golden Gazette is a free newsletter available for all Fairfax County and Falls Church residents and is full of information about services available. To subscribe, call 703-324-5633.

The McLean Senior Source (www.McLeanCVA.org; 703-300-1751) offers free information and referrals to community resources. If you or those you love need help that you aren’t getting, check out these resources and take advantage of the benefits of living in this amazing place.

Betty Douglass,
Chairman of the Board

Download The Full Shepherd’s Herald Newsletter:

Volume 4 Issue 3 – Fall 2018

In this Issue: Q2 2018 Ride Statistics; Message from the Chair on Community-Based Programs and Services; New Board Members

SHEPHERD’S HERALD: Summer 2018 (Volume 4, Issue 2)

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Message from our Chairman:

Aging brings with it many gifts: the pleasure of grandchildren, less pressure to advance one’s career, more flexibility in one’s daily schedule. But aging also brings many losses. One of the greatest losses is the ability to drive a car or easily take public transportation. In our community are many older adults who find that the loss of easy transportation is not just a minor inconvenience, but rather a crisis. Maybe they have no family or friends nearby whom they can ask for a ride. Maybe their limited finances prohibit them from taking taxicabs to needed appointments. The inability to get “out and about” is isolating, dangerous, and frightening. This is why Shepherd’s Center plays such a critical role. The free transportation that our wonderful volunteer drivers provide our clients to medical and dental appointments, therapy sessions, pharmacies and labs is life-saving for those who otherwise would be truly home-bound. We are so grateful for our approximately 100 volunteers. And we desperately need more of you! We ask that you talk with friends and family about becoming SCMAFC volunteers. Almost 25% of our current volunteers came to us through the invitation of a friend. Please help us better serve our neighbors who are so dependent on our services.

Betty Douglass,
Chairman of the Board

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Volume 4 Issue 2 – June 2018

In This Issue: Message from Chair of the Board; Q1 Ride Statistics; McLean Day; List of 2017 Donors, New Board Members

SHEPHERD’S HERALD: February 2018 (Volume 4, Issue 1)

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Message from our Chairman:

Dear Friends of SCMAFC, I am honored to be the new Chair of the SCMAFC Board, and I am humbled to be following in the footsteps of Austine Eversole who has served so wonderfully as Chair for the past three years. I look forward to helping guide this chapter of Shepherd’s Center as we serve older adults in McLean, Arlington, and Falls Church. This Shepherd’s Center is truly an amazing organization. Do you know that ours is the only one of the 6 Shepherd’s Center chapters in Northern Virginia (and one of the few in the nation) that has no paid staff? All of our work is accomplished through the volunteer efforts of about 90 individuals who serve as Board members, committee members, ride coordinators, drivers, friendly visitors or callers, and handy helpers. Our volunteers come from churches and synagogues, from people hearing about us at community events and through friends, from notices we post in local publications. We always need more volunteers, because the demand for our services every single week is greater than we are able to fulfill. You can drive as much or as little as you want; scheduling is always flexible. Please join us! In future issues of this newsletter we will continue to introduce our services, our devoted volunteers, as well as those whom we are grateful to serve— our clients.

Betty Douglass,
Chairman of the Board

Download The Full Shepherd’s Herald Newsletter:

Volume 4 Issue 1 – February 2018

In this issue: Tax Preparation Resources; Message from the Chairman, Betty Douglass; 2017 Ride Statistics; Holiday Party

SHEPHERD’S HERALD: October 2017 (Volume 3, Issue 3)

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Message from our Chairman:

Dear Friends of SCMAFC,

When I started to write this article I realized it will be my last one as the Chairman of the Board of our Shepherd’s Center since I will be leaving the board in January. I planned to write about the special feeling of giving and getting a Thank You in general, but I want to take this opportunity to thank all of the wonderful people I have had the privilege to meet since I started working with this group. We started with little organization and now I think we are a pretty cohesive group who has learned so much from each other and those we help. The people on the board deserve a special Thank You, for you have become my friends and will always be close to me. I want to Thank the volunteers, who have enriched my life in many ways and added something to who I am. I also want to Thank the clients who have opened their lives to us and given us a chance to give help where we can. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you, is a wonderful and simple mantra to live by and one that serves me well. So, in this season of Thanksgiving I want to say THANK YOU to all of you that I have come to know, for enriching my life more every day. On a side note, please remember to support your local food banks especially during this holiday season. Thank You,

Austine Eversole,
Chairman of the Board

Download The Full Shepherd’s Herald Newsletter:

Volume 3 Issue 3 – October 2017

In this issue: Ride Statistics; Note from our Chairman; Helping Seniors Stay Fit; Featured Volunteer Stew Lingley; Information on Preventing getting Scammed; Alternate Transportation Resources