96 volunteers provided 1,422 hours of service to the Center
January – March 13: When business was usual, we had on-site volunteers serving on our Commission on Aging and committees, preparing, serving and delivering meals, instructing and leading groups, repairing and cleaning loan closet equipment, providing in-person tech help, administering blood pressure screens, working our front desk and taking care of other facility and office tasks. We also coordinated sixteen volunteers who provided medical rides through the RSVP Driver program. During this time, 96 volunteers provided 1422 hours of service to the Center.
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Mid-March – December 31: With a reduction in the services we could safely provide, our volunteer roles and policies changed to the following:
Meals on Wheels Volunteers:
Early on, we decided to heed Dane County’s recommendations to find replacements for our volunteer drivers and kitchen helpers over 60 years of age. We are so thankful to the many City of Stoughton staff, Dairyland employees and other community individuals who stepped up to assist with meal packaging and to fill our meal delivery route gaps. In June we began giving meal driver volunteers of every age the option to deliver meals if they were comfortable with our new “no interaction” safety protocol (see Home Delivered Meals). 54 meal drivers provided 1128 hours and 10 kitchen helpers provided 496 hours
COA/Committee Volunteers: Commission on Aging (COA), the Senior Center’s advisory committee, comprised of members from City Council, the Stoughton Area School District, residents of the City of Stoughton and surrounding townships continued to be informed of Center affairs and offered us advice via Zoom meetings. COA work in 2020 comprised a lot of reviewing 2019/2020 survey results and devising space request reports to explain how additional space like the Annex next door would specifically address our needs. 12 members served 65 hours
Leaf Raking Volunteers: Groups from Dairyland, LakeView Church, Stoughton Library, Stoughton High School, Boy Scouts, Triangle Troopers 4H as well as individuals and families greatly assisted older residents with yardwork both in the Spring and Fall. 24 or more people raked 20 yards
Phone Buddy Program Volunteers, Our previous Friendly Visitor Program blended into a phone-only Phone Buddy Program where volunteers would periodically check in with community members. New relationships were later referred to Catholic Charities “Phone Pals” program. 5 phone buddy relationships were established
Tech Support Volunteer: Fortunately, technology allowed those physically distanced to stay socially connected. One knowledgeable volunteer, Joyce Tikalsky kindly offered her expertise and patience in explaining Zoom connections, email set-up and sometimes printer installation—all over the phone and via a Zoom class meeting. one volunteer, 34 hours
Group Leader Volunteer: Beginning in May, we were lucky to have Paul Murphy generously donate his time to offer our participants live virtual trivia on Facebook every Tuesday for several months. Winners received gift cards to local businesses. Paul also put in significant time grilling brats for our Brat Fundraiser!
one volunteer, 60 hours
Support Group Facilitator Volunteers:
Mid-year Dorie Arkin, our Memory Loss Caregiver Support Group facilitator began leading the group via Zoom. one volunteer, 14 hours virtually; approximated 4 people in attendance monthly
Our very own case manager, Murl MacKinnon pioneered the way to offering our first exclusively phone-in Low Vision Support Group. one volunteer, 20 hours; approximately 4 people in attendance monthly
Birthday Card Writer Volunteer: Our volunteers’ birthdays were not missed in 2020 thanks to a kind volunteer with great handwriting! one volunteer, 24 hours
Newsletter Distributer Volunteer: In September, once we re-established a longer list of sites willing to take stacks of our newsletter we enlisted an energetic high school student to deliver them for us. one volunteer, 4 hours
