Compassionate companions needed for seniors

As visitors stepped into Dee Kirsch's room in the memory care unit at Pacifica Senior Living in Coeur d'Alene, she sat up in her bed and welcomed them with a warm smile.

Eager to connect with her guests Thursday afternoon, Kirsch began to spin a story from the past, involving a time she worked abroad as a teacher and lived in a castle. One day, she and a doctor friend went for a walk and they saw a "darling puppy" trying to get inside the castle gates. She and her friend both wanted that puppy, so they flipped a coin and her friend won.

"The animal was washed and cleaned, and I didn’t go back and see what was going with the puppy dog, but the next morning a nurse came to see me and she said, 'Dee, you’re not going to believe this.' She said the puppy had rabies and died, and so did the doctor," Kirsch said to her captive audience. "Meant to be. That’s just a teeny, teeny part of my life."

Kirsch, 87, then pivoted to her love of gardening and how important it is to love your plants.

"You have to put yourself, your energy into the plant and into the flower. And you don’t have to speak out loud; you can speak very softly or extemporaneously into the plant," she said. "If you have a garden and you have a question, ask me. I’ve had a lot of experience of gardens."

All the while, Senior Companion Peggy Smith and Senior Companion-in-training Fae Skific just listened.

"Every client is different," Smith said. "They all come up with these stories. Even if

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they have a memory loss they remember what happened back then."

And sometimes, that's all they need — someone to listen.

North Idaho Senior Companions fills that need, and so many more, for the aging and disabled population in Idaho's five northern counties.

“You will find there are so many people sitting in rooms, it’s dark, and someone will come in and give you something to eat, or maybe a little walk," Kirsch said, looking at Smith. "You will find, as time goes by, there are more and more people that would love to have someone like her."

"I just want to help people," said Smith, who has been a senior companion for eight years.

Senior Companions is a program that enlists the time and talents of volunteers 55 and older who spend a minimum of five hours a week hanging out with their clients, who are generally elderly and unable to drive anymore. That time might entail taking them shopping, to lunch, to the movies, to the doctor's office or staying in and playing cards, doing some light housework, or, listening to stories.

"It just lightens them up," said Elaine West, community relations director at Pacifica. "They become awake and aware, they perk up, they know they have someone coming in to see them ... That anticipation helps their mood, and when their mood is uplifted, it helps with their appetite."

She said the people who serve as Senior Companions are "invaluable."

However, the pool of volunteers is dwarfed by the need for volunteers. The Senior Companions program hasn't been able to take new clients since November, and currently 30 people are on the waiting list.

Rathdrum resident Barbara Longobardi contacted The Press after learning that the program is severely lacking volunteers.

"It made me feel so sad, there's that big hole," said Longobardi, a caregiver for her husband, who has dementia.

"This guy starts telling me, 'I wish I could help you but we don’t have enough volunteers.'"

It's true — the program only has seven volunteers in Shoshone, four in Benewah, four in Boundary, six in Bonner and less than 20 in Kootenai counties. Ideally, said project director Dan Perry, there should be closer to 60 overall.

"We’re short on it," Perry said. "Our clients keep calling and want help and assistance. We just don’t have the volunteers for it."

Senior Companions, a program of Panhandle Health District, took a hit when the local Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) through the Area Agency on Aging closed earlier last year. RSVP placed individuals 55 and older in volunteer positions throughout the community, including the Friendship Corps, which recruited compassionate and caring volunteers to conduct friendly visits and provide support for homebound seniors.

"Senior Companions used to be signed up with RSVP, but we don’t have that program any more," said Marilyn Anders, Area Agency on Aging fiscal and contracts manager. "RSVP was critical. They were matching the volunteers to the opportunities."

Anders said the agency contracts with PHD to use Senior Companions in respite services for caregivers.

"Their respite program is an important part of services here,” she said. "It's a great service they provide."

Perry said the main problem is the getting and retaining volunteers. As of Monday, he said they will be lifting the hold on taking new clients, but they will have to be considered on a case-by-case basis.

"The goal is to help these clients live more independently in their homes," Perry said. "We’re trying to alleviate feelings of depression and loneliness and that disconnect from the community. We’re trying to reconnect them...to help them stay out of assisted living or skilled nursing, which costs so much these days."

One bonus of Senior Companions is the volunteers do receive financial stipends for their work. Perry explained that the Corporation for National and Community Service, established by President John F. Kennedy in the early 1960s and under the umbrella of Senior Corps, supports the program with a grant that gives the volunteers a little kickback.

"The beauty of this program is it helps our volunteers get an extra check. It's not taxable. It's seen as reimbursement," he said. "The volunteers are definitely not employees of Panhandle (Health) or the federal government."

The stipend is $2.65 per hour, set by Congress, Perry said, and volunteers can also receive $0.44 per mile. They do have to meet certain income requirements to receive the stipend, and they must attend training sessions, monthly meetings and other educational opportunities.

Perry, and others who work in senior services, only have more work ahead as the aging population increases in what some call the "Silver Tsunami." According to the AARP, by 2030, the United States, for the first time, will have more 65-and-older residents than children.

Samuel Wolkenhauer, regional economist for the Idaho Department of Labor in Post Falls, said the 55-and-older population in North Idaho was 34,925 in 2007, and had grown to 51,750 in 2017, "so that’s a 48 percent increase in just 10 years, which is quite significant."

For comparison, he said, the 55-and-younger population grew by only 8 percent in those 10 years.

"Our department forecasts that the 55-plus population will grow to about 74,000 by 2027, which would be 43 percent growth over the next 10 years," he said. "The growth of this population has not only been very high in recent years, but we expect this to continue for the foreseeable future.

“Of course, a major factor driving this is the price of housing in our area. Retirees from high-priced coastal markets in California, Portland and Seattle are able to buy beautiful homes here and take advantage of all our natural amenities and generally high quality of life."

More retirees and an increase in the aging population has made the need for volunteers in senior services even more critical.

"My involvement with the Senior Companions Program comes from a heartfelt desire to have compassion and make a difference in the lives of our senior citizens, many of which are isolated, with limited resources and no connection with the community," Perry said. "I don’t want to see any of our frail elderly in the Panhandle 'fall through the cracks,' be neglected or go unnoticed. The Senior Companions program, through our dedicated volunteers, shows compassion and makes a difference every day in the lives of others in need."

Visit www.seniorcompanionsidaho.org for information or to volunteer.