Letter to the Editor: Ensure students vaccinated before start of school year

Wilkes-Barre community partners target Millennials with emerging leadership event

<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; Wayne Wolfe believes the talents and abilities of retired and senior volunteers are invaluable to the community.</p><p>He also believes that senior and retired adults who volunteer within the community have an opportunity to build fellowship with peers, get to know others in the community and use their skills.</p><p>To Wolfe, it&#8217;s a win-win situation.</p><p>The Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP), of which Wolfe is director for Luzerne and Wyoming counties, embraces both these benefits, as well as providing resources for non-profit organizations who welcome seniors in performing a variety of jobs in a volunteer capacity.</p><p>&#8220;We act as a clearing house, serving in some ways as a Human Resource department, matching skills with abilities,&#8221; he said.</p><p>Nancy Post, Director of Volunteer Initiatives at the Voluntary Action Center &#8212; which oversees the project as recipient of the grant which funds it &#8212; said she is impressed with the scope of abilities older volunteers bring to the table.</p><p>&#8220;From working with children to working with other seniors,&#8221; said Post, &#8220;from reading a story to a toddler to assisting others with preparing their taxes. All our volunteers are unique and necessary.&#8221;</p><p>Some members of the RSVP help other seniors with life skills, serving as mentors.</p><p>Another initiative which Post is especially looking forward to is the Pen pal program, which will be available at State Street Elementary providing a chance for children and older adults to write back and forth and ultimately meet each other at the end-of-the-year activity.</p><p>Often youngsters don&#8217;t have an understanding of older people, their lives and abilities.</p><p>&#8220;One young man wrote to a senior asking what he did when he was alive,&#8221; said a laughing Post. &#8220;The senior wrote back saying that he was still very much alive.&#8221;</p><p>Often senior volunteers exceed expectations, stepping into such positions as mentoring children at Mineral Springs housing complex, working one-on-one with them after school, often assisting with cultural awareness and social activities, with grace and confidence.</p><p>&#8220;Our volunteers work with kids, helping to break the cycle of poverty,&#8221; said Wolfe.</p><p>Post said she remembers one volunteer who came to the RSVP program on the advice of his doctor.</p><p>&#8220;The doctor told him, you can go home and sit on your couch or you can go home and find an organization which will help you become productive,&#8221; she said. &#8220;Years later, that man is still actively volunteering his time.&#8221;</p><p>Post said many of participants who have been out of the workforce for a period of time come into the program and get a renewed sense of purpose.</p><p>Board member Joe Nalbone, is not only excited about the progress the program has made in the year since its been re-instituted in the Wyoming Valley, he is also looking to the future.</p><p>With an IT background, Nalbone hopes to establish a Facebook and web page that will update the public on activities of the program, and provide potential volunteers and non-profit organizations a chance to become familiar with the program.</p><p>Wolfe credits his 15 member advisory board members which he deems &#8220;fantastic,&#8221; with embracing new ideas while bringing a wealth of experience in the area of volunteering to the program.</p><p>&#8220;I believe that as we continue to let the public know our need for volunteers and for participation of non-profits, that we will continue to successfully move forward,&#8221; said Wolfe. &#8220;We would also like to begin addressing the needs of our veterans, both as volunteers and recipients of our efforts.&#8221;</p><p>Presently 100 volunteers take part in the program with over 25 participating non-profits. (stations).</p><p>When asked about the future, Wolfe said he had a definite goal.</p><p>&#8220;We hope to have over 230 senior volunteers, with an increasing number of participating non-profits,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I know we can do it.&#8221;</p><p>Those interested in volunteering in the RSVP program or in utilizing senior volunteers in a non-profit organization, can contact Wolfe at 570-822-1250 or by email at wwolfe@vacnepa.org.</p><style>
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<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_TTL080515RSVPvolunteers_11.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">RSVP Luzerne/Wyoming Counties Director Wayne Wolfe, left, greets RSVP Advisory Board members Tanya Chin-Pyke, Anne Rappaport, and Pastor Janelle Wigen during an open house for retirees and seniors who wish to be placed in volunteer positions. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_TTL080515RSVPvolunteers_11.jpg</photo0><caption0>RSVP Luzerne/Wyoming Counties Director Wayne Wolfe, left, greets RSVP Advisory Board members Tanya Chin-Pyke, Anne Rappaport, and Pastor Janelle Wigen during an open house for retirees and seniors who wish to be placed in volunteer positions. </caption0><photoCredit0>Bill Tarutis | For Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_TTL080515RSVPvolunteers_21.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">RSVP Luzerne/Wyoming Counties Director Wayne Wolfe, right, reviews an information pamphlet with Family Services Association of NEPA Director Michael Zimmerman and Lackawanna County Volunteer Action Center Director Nancy Post during an open house for retirees and seniors who wish to be placed in volunteer positions. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_TTL080515RSVPvolunteers_21.jpg</photo1><caption1>RSVP Luzerne/Wyoming Counties Director Wayne Wolfe, right, reviews an information pamphlet with Family Services Association of NEPA Director Michael Zimmerman and Lackawanna County Volunteer Action Center Director Nancy Post during an open house for retirees and seniors who wish to be placed in volunteer positions. </caption1><photoCredit1>Bill Tarutis | For Times Leader </photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Geri Gibbons</p><p>ggibbons@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta></factboxMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Geri Gibbons at 570-991-6117 or on Twitter @TLGGibbons.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Program lets seniors put skills to work