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PRESS RELEASE: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact Info: Gina King Director, Volunteer Services 860-425-6517 gking@tvcca.org TVCCA Seeks Seniors to Serve as AmeriCorps Senior Volunteers in Local Community New London, CT (March 2, 2021) – The demand for volunteers is growing in Eastern Connecticut with more seniors and people with disabilities socially isolated due to COVID. There is a critical need to connect people with services focusing on socialization, food insecurity, and economic uncertainty. Thames Valley Council for Community Action’s (TVCCA) Retired and Senior Volunteer Program, or RSVP, provides meaningful volunteer opportunities for individuals age 55+. The program is funded through AmeriCorps Seniors, previously known as the Corporation for National and Community Service. Volunteers in the program are known as AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers. Local seniors who are interested in volunteer opportunities that improve the quality of life for their elderly or disabled neighbors should contact: New London County: Georgia James, RSVP Program Coordinator 860-425-6608, gjames@tvcca.org. Windham County: Sherry Main, RSVP Program Coordinator 860-774-9286, smain@tvcca.org Volunteer assignments are individualized around each person’s schedule and community. TVCCA’s RSVP has responded to COVID challenges in a variety of ways such as recruiting volunteers to deliver for TVCCA’s Meals on Wheels program, which has experienced a tremendous increase in homebound seniors needing nutritious meals. AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers in TVCCA’s RSVP program help to deliver over 1,000 meals per day throughout Eastern Connecticut. They also provide a wellness check and a friendly hello to the senior as they drop off the meal. In an effort to keep people socially connected, RSVP matches volunteers with someone in their community to keep the lines of communication going and their spirits lifted with weekly phone chats. “The RSVP volunteer program has brought vitality and a broadening of my world into my home,” says a female client who looks forward to weekly phone visits from her volunteer. Another way RSVP has responded to COVID challenges is by providing grocery shopping services for those who are homebound and cannot drive. A volunteer is matched with someone in need in their community and picks up and drops off groceries, medication, and library books. “My volunteer is the best that anyone could ever hope to find. I thank you for sending him my way,” says one RSVP client, who because of COVID is homebound and happy with the shopping services the program provides. About TVCCA: Thames Valley Council for Community Action, Inc. (TVCCA) is a private, non-profit organization that has been providing social services in southeastern Connecticut since 1965. TVCCA is well recognized as a community leader – and partner – in advocating for and meeting the needs of the region’s economically and otherwise disadvantaged citizens. For more information visit tvcca.org.