The days of joint families have gone and with better incomes as well as changing lifestyles the youth mostly aspire to live independently. A survey of 15,000 older people, by the Agewell Foundation says that 47.49% of elderly people in India suffer from loneliness. The condition is worse in urban regions where about 64.1% of the elderly were found suffering from loneliness. We have in our communities many elderly and not-so-elderly homebound-members. They may be lonely, depressed or may just crave for company, as their loved ones are possibly not so close or not readily available.
Discussions with members of the community reveal widespread awareness of this “Need” and a strong “Concern” to address it. These concerned members come from a wide cross-section of the community. There is the youth, working professionals and even retired members who wish to contribute in their ways to be a part of a mission to help the elderly living alone. Recently-retired professionals, senior citizens and housewives, all are willing to sacrifice some of their valuable leisure time to address this shared ‘‘Concern”.
These like-minded individuals have come together to form Connect n Care.
The vision of Connect n Care is “To create a caring community committed to improving the quality of life of its most vulnerable”. Started in January 2019 at St. Andrews Church, it is a group of trained volunteers, supported by experienced professionals, providing well-defined regular services to identified vulnerable members. The group aims to develop Standard Best Practices through documentation, assessment and continual improvements, for promoting and encouraging the widespread formation of similar groups.
The activities include family visits, meet-ups for the elderly, support for basic chores like banking services, going for consultations with doctors and so on. The team has a database of all members visited and another directory for essential services which the members can readily use. The activities have now grown to include the churches of St. Michael’s Church, Mahim & Mt. Carmel Church, Bandra. There are also large events at times to bring the entire community together. An event Eve by the Sea on 17th December 2019, was conducted at Bandstand Promenade for homebound and seniors.
Few testimonials from the members of Connect n Care shows the power of this growing community.
Anil Bhurani who came to the event at Bandstand with his mother opines, “Thank you for having us over at the Eve by the Sea. It was truly wonderful. The initiative, the audience, the lovely senior citizens, the volunteers, the arrangements were wonderful.”
Mr & Mrs Khatautoo enjoyed the function, “Thank you for taking the trouble to organise the lovely function. It was a lot of fun.”
If you are interested to volunteer or wish to register for Connect n Care, you may contact Serena D’Sa 9819319305, Loretta Pereira 9819246535 or Roy Fonseca 9820181568.
