NEXT Village San Francisco, a nonprofit group that helps seniors in the city's northeastern neighborhoods age in place, is looking for volunteers to help with a program that gives free emergency kits and a three-day food supply to their members.
The group has lined up volunteer drivers to deliver close to 50 kits throughout North Beach, Nob Hill, Russian Hill, Telegraph Hill, the Financial District and the Marina from 12:30-2:30pm on Friday, July 31st, but it's seeking others who can walk home from Saints Peter and Paul Parish Center (660 Filbert St.) with seniors who might have difficulty carrying the kit.
NEXT Village also needs extra hands to insert information packets into the kits and fill food bags. The bagging efforts will be held at 11am on Sunday, July 26th, at the State Farm office of Rebekah Shapiro (725 Filbert St.) For those who can't make the two sessions but want to lend a hand, NEXT Village is always seeking volunteers to help with its ongoing mission of assisting seniors with everything from rides to light household tasks, computer help, companionship and referrals.
Photo: Rebekah S./Yelp
All NEXT Village member households are eligible to receive the kits, said Jacqueline Zimmer-Jones, the group's executive director. "If people join NEXT Village, that is one of the benefits," she said. "Each kit costs about $125, and then the food is about $25 per person, so it’s about $150 per person for the [full] kits. It’s really nice."
NEXT Village San Francisco, which has about 110 members, is among more than 150 "villages" nationwide that helps seniors age in place. This is the first time a village has provided emergency kits to members, Zimmer-Jones said.
Kits include personal hygiene products, an LED flashlight with extra-long life, medical supplies, a collapsible water container, and two items that can indicate help is needed: an LED light and a bright yellow banner that reads "I need help" that a person can put on a window or door. It has 22 items in all, said Zimmer-Jones. "This would be a tough item for many of our members to purchase in the quality we’ve provided, "she said. "Some kits have three aspirin and some Band-Aids. This is top-of-the-line."
Grants from the Wallace Gerbode Foundation and Wells Fargo funded the project, Zimmer-Jones said. Volunteers from the San Francisco Evening Rotary Club and Stanford University will deliver close to 50 kits, but about 25 NEXT Village members plan to walk to the parish to pick theirs up, which is why volunteers are needed to help them make it home.
Zimmer-Jones got the idea for the kits when NEXT Village gave a presentation on preparing for disasters. "There were about 40 people there, and only four of them had a kit," she said. Since announcing the program, she said many members have told her, "This is something I should have done a long time ago; it’s always been in the back of my mind. I’ve wanted to purchase one, but they’re expensive."
"People turn to us when they need something," said Zimmer-Jones. "Who are they going to turn to in the event of a disaster? That’s kind of what got me thinking about it. Your best defense is to be as self-sufficient as possible."
