Partners In Care, a community non-profit organization, is dedicated to empowering older adults to remain independent in their own homes. The organization operates as a unique service-exchange program where members volunteer their time and may receive services when needed based on a time banking system.  Volunteers are needed to help meet the increasing demand for services. Drivers are needed to transport Partners In Care members to doctors’ appointments and grocery stores and help with errands.  Approximately 125 rides are provided each week.  Volunteers are also needed to complete minor handyman repairs; provide in-home computer help; work in the upscale resale boutique; assist in the office; and help with the Warm Houses program which brings small groups of seniors together to socialize.  No amount of volunteer time is too small. Just two hours per month can make a difference to a person in need, often provides relief to caregivers, and can be a rewarding experience. Many NSA retirees are already active as Partners In Care volunteers and find their experience to be very rewarding!
 
To obtain a volunteer application and make reservations for a volunteer orientation please call 410-544-4800.  The next orientations are scheduled for September 17, 2009 and October 28, 2009, either 2:00 p.m. or 5:00 p.m., at the main Partners In Care Office, 6 South Ritchie Highway, Pasadena, MD.  Partners In Care also operates in Frederick, MD and Brooklyn, MD and will open a new location in Easton, on the Eastern Shore of MD, by the end of the summer.  See www.partnersincare.org for additional information.

During February 2009, Partners in Care was selected by the National Council on Aging  to participate in the Multigenerational and Civic Engagement Initiative.  This initiative is intended to strengthen valuable locally developed programs that hold promise to become national models.