The Abrapa needs new blood. One of the missions of this association, which works in the Bas-Rhin, is to help our most isolated and vulnerable seniors. The 300 or so Abrapa volunteers in Bas-Rhin bring them a little human warmth in nursing homes, senior residences or at home. Animations, outings, or just a little chat to break the isolation.
Abrapa is looking for young workers or students to swell the ranks of their teams of volunteers, like Guenoëlle. The 24-year-old young woman got involved in the association while confinements deprived her of her professional activity in the hotel industry in Strasbourg. “I was a little fed up”, she confirms. Every week, Guenoëlle spends a little time alongside Doris, an octogenarian from Strasbourg, at home or by phone. “She’s a lady who suffers a lot from loneliness. I’m a bit like a confidante. It’s gratifying to know to tell yourself that you can make someone smile again.”, she delivers.
About fifty isolated elderly people
In Strasbourg, the association coordinates around thirty volunteers at home like Guenoëlle. On behalf of Abrapa, Gina Semitela recruits them, directs them to training and then creates these volunteer-senior pairs, at home. According to the manager, there are too many few volunteers working at home. “We have requests that we cannot honor, she explains, cEach volunteer follows an elderly person, but I won’t hide from you that we have about fifty people who need visits. “
This shortage is explained by the decline in the number of volunteers, discouraged and removed from the associative world by successive confinements, but also by the networking and closer monitoring of Abrapa. Thanks to a partnership with the city of Strasbourg, the association has access to the “Heat wave” telephone files, which identify isolated or vulnerable elderly people.
If the health situation continues to deteriorate, and if government health directives require it, Abrapa could forgo home visits and resort only to telephone appointments to maintain the link with our elders.