If there is one thing that seniors have in common, it is a desire to live independently for as long as possible.
Even if assistance is needed, most seniors prefer to stay in their homes.
But with a quarter of Vernon’s population being over the age of 65, this desire means the demand for support services through NexusBC Community Resource Centre is high.
“The home support programs we offer are truly a lifeline for many seniors who would otherwise need to live in an assisted living facility if it were not for the help they receive through us,” says Elaine Waugh, coordinator with NexusBC.
“Next to house cleaning, our volunteer driving service is the most popular.”
Last year, NexusBC’s volunteer drivers provided 1,214 rides for local seniors to visit the doctor, shop for groceries or get to appointments.
But the demand for rides is growing.
“Our goal is to recruit more volunteer drivers and through Kal Tire’s Tires for Good Program, we saw an opportunity to leverage the Kal Tire gifts as contest prizes to entice interest in the driving program,” says Lee Brinkman, marketing and events manager with NexusBC.
“The contest had great engagement with our current volunteers and several new volunteers signed up.”
The contest winners provided a total of 109 rides to seniors from May to August. Each won $500 towards a set of tires from Kal Tire.
Volunteers interested in driving seniors are encouraged to apply at www.NexusBC.ca.
Kal's Tires for Good program is open every year from January through August and is available to nonprofits across Canada.
