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2 <br /> and congregation size. Eldercare Program staff have been frustrated by not being able to utilize those <br /> persons who call the Department wishing to volunteer in the homes of older adults. With no coordinated <br /> means by which to screen,track, and recognize such persons it has been senseless to assign duties to them. <br /> The proposed project would utilize volunteers to meet the non-personal care needs of older <br /> adults in the county, thus saving public dollars and making help available to those persons who cannot <br /> afford to pay for it privately. The project will engage 50 volunteers and serve 50 clients in its first year. The <br /> Department's full-time Eldercare Specialist will oversee the project, and train and supervise the proposed <br /> volunteer project coordinator. Training of volunteers will occur through the use of a manual created by <br /> Eldercare Program staff, and a video, both covering topics pertinent to those working with older persons. <br /> Volunteers will be screened and will serve a probationary period. Evaluation will include yearly satisfaction <br /> surveys of both clients and volunteers, as well as a check-in call to each client after the first three months <br /> of service. Volunteer tasks and hours will be tracked. Volunteers will be recognized in various ways, <br /> including"Volunteer of the Month" awards, and yearly appreciation teas. <br /> Requested grants would fund at different amounts. $4800 is being requested from the <br /> Triangle Community Foundation, which would include $1680 for recruitment and training materials, and <br /> $3120 for a 10-hour-per-week stipended volunteer coordinator position. $1,000 is being requested from <br /> the Chapel Hill Newcomers' Club. This amount would fund only material costs and would require a scaled <br /> back version of the Triangle-funded project because of the lack of a volunteer coordinator. Future funding <br /> would be elicited from these same organizations as well as others. <br /> Recommendation: The Manager recommends approval of funding proposals by the Eldercare Program of <br /> the Department on Aging to the Triangle Community Foundation ($4,800) and to the Chapel Hill <br /> Newcomers' Club ($1,000)for a volunteer in-home assistance project. <br /> FN:AB70121D.doc <br />