Warwick's Friendly Visitor Program: 'You get more than you give'

WARWICK — “You get more than you give.”
That’s what Jerry Fischetti has to say to prospective volunteers for Warwick’s Friendly Visitor Program (FVP).
Volunteers are needed to build on the success of this simple service. Perhaps you’d like to consider volunteering in 2019.
Jerry and his wife Lucy Fischetti had moved to Warwick in 1968. They embraced the town as their home and had volunteered for 17 years at St. Anthony Community Hospital.
Now they’re on the receiving end of the town’s FVP volunteer services.
Jerry often needs a ride for medical services and is happy to have met at least five of Warwick’s FVP volunteers over the past several months.
Lucy is the one who schedules the rides and makes careful calendar notes to make sure Jerry gets to his appointments.
One of the volunteers is Carolyn Riley, a retired registered nurse. Carolyn volunteers regularly to give residents of Warwick a lift to a medical appointment.
Early in Carolyn’s career, she had worked at a nursing home and learned that there are so many life stories to be told. She is amazed by the histories that people have shared with her.
Her medical background is by no means a requirement for the volunteer work, yet speaks to her lifelong concern for people in her community.
Well over 100 neighbors have received help through Warwick’s FVP since its inception in May 2017.
Neighbors helping neighbors is what the FVP is all about. A neighbor may simply need a ride to an appointment right in town or sometimes in Goshen or Middletown.
Often giving someone a lift works well into a volunteer’s own personal schedule and offers an incredible amount of help to the neighbor who can’t drive.
The reward is great; the act is simple. Modest mileage reimbursement is available through The Office of the Aging.
FVP volunteers also help neighbors with food shopping, either for or with them. A volunteer may give someone a ride to a senior club, a pharmacy, the bank, The Dollar Store or to the grocery store.
A volunteer may stop by a neighbor’s home to play a card game or chess or just to talk and maybe laugh at a few jokes.
Some volunteers provide help on a regular basis while others offer occasional help that works with their own busy lives. Again, the reward is great; the act is simple.
Studies show that staying engaged with your community will help you live a long and healthy life.
Consider becoming a volunteer and helping your neighbors stay engaged in their community as well.
EssentialsFor information on how you can become a volunteer, please call the Warwick Town Hall at 986-1124 ext. 400.
The next two-hour training will be on Thursday, Jan. 17, 2019.
The Friendly Visitor Program is a partnership effort with The Office for the Aging, Jewish Family Service and The Town of Warwick.

This article was submitted by Jean Corbi Ciappa, a member of the Board of Advisors for the Friendly Visitor Program.