Free Calls Offered to Older Americans Living Alone
2020-05-22
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1The coronavirus pandemic can be especially difficult for older adults who live alone.
2To help support them, some American communities and groups have set up services aimed at meeting their needs for human contact and small talk.
3The city of Plano, Texas offers such a program.
4A group of about 15 city government workers reach out to Plano's elderly individuals by telephone.
5Now, some residents look forward to getting phone calls from total strangers.
6The idea of getting calls from a stranger - just to chat - was immediately appealing to 81-year-old Dell Kaplan.
7"It gets pretty lonely here by yourself," she told The Associated Press.
8Older individuals are more likely than other age groups to get infected with and die from COVID-19, the disease resulting from the coronavirus.
9Because of this, health officials have urged people over 65 to keep staying home even as some areas begin lifting restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of the virus.
10Kaplan enjoys the chats while missing out on family get-togethers, dining with friends and attending classes at a nearby college.
11Holly Ryckman is one of the government workers taking part in the program.
12Together they make about 50 calls a week to Plano's elderly residents.
13"It's really just to give them a social outlet that they might not have otherwise," she said.
14Ryckman noted that people receiving the calls have differing amounts of social contact in their lives.
15Some like to talk about family members who are keeping in touch.
16That is the case for Kaplan, who said she often speaks on the phone with family members and friends, and also keeps up with people on Facebook.
17But Kaplan said her bi-weekly chats with Ryckman give her something to look forward to "besides the usual."
18Brent Bloechle helped organize Plano's program.
19He says the city plans to keep it operating at least through mid-summer, and maybe permanently.
20Another project providing free calls to elderly Americans is the Friendly Voices program.
21It is a service of AARP, an organization representing the interests of older Americans.
22Laurie Onofrio-Collier has been placing calls from her home in California to people across the country.
23She says her goal for each call is to help the other person "feel uplifted, to feel good."
24Like the Plano program, Friendly Voices' volunteers help guide people to resources and local groups if they need help with getting food or other necessities.
25But the main goal of the project is to provide a social connection.
26Onofrio-Collier said the adults she has spoken with talk about a lot of things, from personal interests to happy memories.
27She connected with one caller over a shared experience.
28"We ended up talking about how ... when we were kids, we loved to read so much that we would read under the covers with a flashlight."
29"I get off the phone with a smile," she said. Onofrio-Collier is among about 1,000 volunteers making the calls, notes Andy Miller, who works with AARP.
30He said some people ask for help with technology so they can stay connected with family members.
31One volunteer helped a woman learn how to play a game of checkers online with her grandchild.
32"We're seeing a lot of that -- where people are just trying to stay connected to family in ways that they probably didn't do before," Miller said.
33I'm Bryan Lynn.
1The coronavirus pandemic can be especially difficult for older adults who live alone. To help support them, some American communities and groups have set up services aimed at meeting their needs for human contact and small talk. 2The city of Plano, Texas offers such a program. A group of about 15 city government workers reach out to Plano's elderly individuals by telephone. Now, some residents look forward to getting phone calls from total strangers. 3The idea of getting calls from a stranger - just to chat - was immediately appealing to 81-year-old Dell Kaplan. "It gets pretty lonely here by yourself," she told The Associated Press. 4Older individuals are more likely than other age groups to get infected with and die from COVID-19, the disease resulting from the coronavirus. Because of this, health officials have urged people over 65 to keep staying home even as some areas begin lifting restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of the virus. 5Kaplan enjoys the chats while missing out on family get-togethers, dining with friends and attending classes at a nearby college. 6Holly Ryckman is one of the government workers taking part in the program. Together they make about 50 calls a week to Plano's elderly residents. "It's really just to give them a social outlet that they might not have otherwise," she said. 7Ryckman noted that people receiving the calls have differing amounts of social contact in their lives. Some like to talk about family members who are keeping in touch. That is the case for Kaplan, who said she often speaks on the phone with family members and friends, and also keeps up with people on Facebook. 8But Kaplan said her bi-weekly chats with Ryckman give her something to look forward to "besides the usual." 9Brent Bloechle helped organize Plano's program. He says the city plans to keep it operating at least through mid-summer, and maybe permanently. 10Another project providing free calls to elderly Americans is the Friendly Voices program. It is a service of AARP, an organization representing the interests of older Americans. 11Laurie Onofrio-Collier has been placing calls from her home in California to people across the country. She says her goal for each call is to help the other person "feel uplifted, to feel good." 12Like the Plano program, Friendly Voices' volunteers help guide people to resources and local groups if they need help with getting food or other necessities. But the main goal of the project is to provide a social connection. 13Onofrio-Collier said the adults she has spoken with talk about a lot of things, from personal interests to happy memories. She connected with one caller over a shared experience. "We ended up talking about how ... when we were kids, we loved to read so much that we would read under the covers with a flashlight." 14"I get off the phone with a smile," she said. Onofrio-Collier is among about 1,000 volunteers making the calls, notes Andy Miller, who works with AARP. He said some people ask for help with technology so they can stay connected with family members. 15One volunteer helped a woman learn how to play a game of checkers online with her grandchild. "We're seeing a lot of that -- where people are just trying to stay connected to family in ways that they probably didn't do before," Miller said. 16I'm Bryan Lynn. 17The Associated Press reported this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 18We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. 19________________________________________________________________ 20Words in This Story 21pandemic - n. a disease spreading over a wide area and affecting a high percentage of the population 22chat - v. to talk with someone in a friendly, unstructured way 23outlet - n. a way for someone to express an emotion, idea or ability 24uplift - v. to make someone happy or hopeful 25kids - n. children