VOLUNTEER CONNECTION

Transcription

1 Serving the City of Las Cruces for over 40 years! VOLUNTEER CONNECTION THE NETWORK VOLUNTEER CENTER MONTHLY NEWSLETTER November 2018 Volunteer Spotlight Blood Pressure Checks, Sharon Tariol & Mary Brallier In October of this year, Network Volunteer Mary Brallier presented a great presentation on the importance of monitoring our blood pressure. Blood pressure, as Mary presented, affects many different body systems and organs, and high blood pressure increases our risks of heart attack and stroke. Her presentation explained the ins and outs of why that is. A nurse for over 30 years, Mary, a native of Minnesota who lives here with her husband Don Koetz, really enjoys volunteering for the Que Pasa presentations as well as helping people monitor their blood pressure at the Munson Center. I love meeting new people and hearing their stories, and also helping them to stay healthy and improve their quality of life. Sharon Tariol, a long-time Network Volunteer and also a retired nurse, has Volunteer Opportunities been helping with blood pressure checks for many years. Coming to Las Cruces from Iowa, she has been able to get involved with a variety of volunteer Food Distributions opportunities including working with the youth of the Juvenile Citation Program Pet Food Drive and helping with the Volunteer Fair each year. But her passion for health awareness always brings her back to the blood pressure monitoring she has been doing for years for Senior Programs. We will be starting to branch out our blood pressure monitoring at other centers once a month. I will be heading to each center on the first four Mondays of the month, and Mary will continue to provide the monitoring every Monday at Munson Center from 11am-1pm. Come by and see Sharon or Mary to monitor your blood pressure on Mondays! November Date Center Time In This Issue Volunteer Spotlight Blood Pressure Checks Burrell Students GSYAP Que Pasa? & Music Volunteer Fair Steering Committee Week 1 11/5 Sage Cafe Week 2 11/12 or 11/13 Papen 11-1pm Week 3 11/19 Benavidez 11-1pm Week 4 11/26 Eastside Above: Blood Pressure Check Schedule Above, Right: Sharon Tariol checking the blood pressure of a Munson patron; Below, Right: Network Volunteer, Mary Brallier giving a presentation on why we should monitor our blood pressure regularly. 1

2 Volunteer Happenings Thank you to Burrell Medical Students On October 27th, 14 students from the Burrell Institute of Osteopathic Medicine gathered and split into two groups to tackle four yards (two yards each) on the list waiting for yard assistance from the Golden Shield Yard Assistance Program. We are very thankful for this hard-working crew who gave up their Saturday from a busy study schedule to help our local seniors in need! Volunteer Fair Steering Committee The Volunteer Fair is still a ways away (not until April of 2019!), but the planning will start in November! We are in need of some amazing volunteers to serve on the VF committee. Meetings are monthly with tasks to be done between each meeting. We have some new and exciting things happening. Come and be a part of it! Contact Ryan Steinmetz at or rsteinmetz@las-cruces.org. Music in the Air! Qué pasa? What s Happening? Thank you so much to Mary Brallier who gave a wonderful presentation on the importance of monitoring our blood pressure. There will be no Que Pasa meeting in November, but we will be meeting in December to talk about getting through the holidays without succumbing to the holiday blues! some originals too. We have our own Network Volunteer, Bobby Trevino and his beautiful tenor voice coming in on October 25th from 12-2, right before the dance! Thank you to Nicole Osborn who performed at the Munson Center on Thursday, September20th playing some fun music from Carole King to Fleetwood Mac, along with 2

3 The Network Volunteer Center VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES We have lots of places who have been waiting for a volunteer like you! Contact Ryan Steinmetz at rsteinmetz@las-cruces.org or to schedule a time to discuss volunteer possibilities and to sign up for a volunteer orientation. Codes Enforcement Senior Programs is developing a partnership with Codes Enforcement and is looking for groups of volunteers interested in helping with the Golden Shield Yard Assistance program helping seniors in need. Tuesdays and Fridays are available. There are a lot of seniors waiting on this list. Juvenile Citation Program Office Volunteers and tutors/mentors are needed for this important program working with youth in our community. Museums Help with surveys for museum services! Also, Spanish Translators and Tour Guides needed for upcoming Prado exhibit! Railroad Museum Volunteers are needed to cover front desk duties on Thursday mornings, and Saturdays (both AM and PM Shifts). Museum of Nature and Science Looking for new volunteers, especially on Saturdays Museum of Art Volunteer models needed. Volunteers are needed to sit for portraits for art classes (Don t worry, you can keep your clothes on!) Las Cruces Airport NEW!! Office Assistant The Las Cruces Airport is looking for some organized volunteers to help at the Las Cruces airport offices. Never seen the Las Cruces Airport and want to see how it functions? This is a great opportunity! Senior Programs: General Quilting and Crochet Volunteer Groups Want to learn how to quilt or crochet and help the community with the items you make? These groups are for you! Gardeners The Munson Center Community Garden is in need of new volunteers! We meet once a month for meetings and of course spend a lot of time in the garden. Don t know much about gardens? That s ok, we ll teach ya! Mosaics Instructor Needed for the Munson Center Senior Programs: Nutrition and Meals Dining Room Aides Munson, Benavidez, and Eastside Centers Volunteers are needed to help at the centers serving meals and helping with clean-up of tables, especially Thursday and Friday. Kitchen Aide Needed one day a week at Sage Café. Also needed at Munson and Benavidez Centers Meals on Wheels Respite Drivers Volunteers are needed to help take on short routes to help make the existing routes more manageable for the assigned drivers. Volunteers must have a good driving record and also go through a defensive drivers training and drug test. Thomas Branigan Memorial Library Shelf-cleaning Crew Volunteers are needed for cleaning books and shelves at the library on a continuous basis. A variety of shifts available. 3

4 Volunteer Opportunities for November 2018 Continued After-School Programs, Juvenile Citation Program, and Weed and Seed Tutor/Activity Support Working on tutoring and other programming with area youth through Weed and Seed, especially needed for summer hours. Mentor Working one-on-one with a youth matched with you through the Weed and Seed program Network Volunteer Center Social Media Outreach Volunteers Volunteers are needed to help with social media presence for the Network and Senior Programs. Volunteer Fair Steering Committee Volunteers are needed to help with the Steering Committee that will begin meeting in November. Teams available are Logistics, Registration, Hospitality, and PR/ Marketing Food Distributions Volunteers are needed to help with the food distributions at all five centers. See following for monthly schedule: 1st Monday Sage Café 1st Thursday Papen Center 4th Monday Eastside Center 4th Wednesday Munson Center 1st Friday Benavidez Center Other Community Opportunities Winterfest at Railroad Museum is looking for some volunteers to help with their annual visit from Santa s train! We need elves and folks to help out with crowd control and refreshments as well as help with children s activities. If you or a group you re involved with may be interested, contact Ryan Steinmetz at rsteinmetz@las-cruces.org CARE, Inc. CARE, Inc. supports local cancer patients by providing funds to help with bills, transportation costs, and other hardships that are experienced when a loved one is diagnosed with cancer. Volunteers are needed to help with clerical/office tasks. If interested, contact Yoli Diaz at yoli@carelascruces.org or YOLIDIAZ6@msn.com, or call New Mexico Aging and Long-Term Services Department Volunteers are needed to help at the NM Aging & Long-Term Services office during the day in order to answer phones, assist clients, take messages, refer to outside services, and general clerical needs. Contact Stephanie Lazarin at

5 Food Distributions for November Food Distribution Our monthly Food Distributions are going great at all five of our centers! Thank you to all the volunteers who have helped make this program a success. We can always use more volunteers! Here are the upcoming dates in July. As always, we thank our partners Casa de Peregrinos and Roadrunner Food Bank for making this program possible. Nov. 1st Papen Center 301 W. Bell Ave. 1st Thursday Nov. 2nd Benavidez Center 1045 McClure Rd. 1st Friday Nov. 5th Sage Café 6121 Reynolds Dr. 1st Monday Nov. 26th Eastside Center 310 N. Tornillo St. 4th Monday Nov. 28th Munson Center 975 S. Mesquite St. 4th Wednesday Also, Casa de Peregrinos will be giving away 1500 turkeys and Thanksgiving baskets this holiday season. Contact Casa de Peregrinos at (575) for details. Food 4 Paws Pet Food Drive Volunteers Needed! On October 27th, the Food 4 Paws Program collected over 2,300 pounds of food (plus 300 cans of food) for the Food 4 Paws program and Action Program for Animals. A total of 26 volunteers were spread out over 8 separate collection locations, putting in 86 hours of volunteer service! Thank you to Food 4 Paws volunteers Marcy Caritj, Irma Telles, Eileen Monihan, and Don Koetz, special volunteers Amanda Lopez, Joanna Moore, Michelle Pennell and son Aiden, Nutrition Staff Cici Williams and Elfida Vasquez, and all the volunteers from the Families and Youth, Inc. JCC program (these youth collected the most food from their sites). Also, special thanks to the area businesses who allowed our volunteers to collect items at their station. Petco, Petsmart, Pets Barn, Better Life Pet Food Store (both locations), Tractor Supply, Horse N Hound, and The Feed Store. Your support helped to garner much needed food and other items for the pets of area Meals on Wheels recipients. Special thanks to Joanna Moore for her amazing art skills with our posters! 5

6 We Want YOU to be a Network Volunteer! The Network Volunteer Center is always in need of volunteers to serve their community in many different ways. The Network is open to people of all ages! How can you be a Network Volunteer? It s as easy as 1-2-3! 1. Fill out a Network Volunteer Application. You can find our application online through the City of Las Cruces website, or you can contact the Volunteer Coordinator, Ryan Steinmetz, at the contact information listed to the right. 2. Attend a Volunteer Orientation. This is a brief orientation that only lasts an hour-and-a-half; it gives you all the tools and basic training you ll need in order to be placed. 3. Get matched to a meaningful volunteer experience. Once placed, you will receive training specific to your placement. Contact Us Give us a call for more information about volunteering with the City of Las Cruces! The Network Volunteer Center 975 S. Mesquite St. Las Cruces, NM (575) rsteinmetz@las-cruces.org Note: The City of Las Cruces does may require criminal and driving background checks depending on the tasks of the position. Volunteers under 18 will need parental permission and may require parental presence to participate in volunteer service. Visit us on the Web! Ryan Steinmetz, Network Volunteer Center Coordinator Area Veterans and Families Work on Memorial A local veterans group and families of veterans gathered at the Bataan Memorial at Veterans Memorial Park to clean off and put sealant over the footprints of Bataan survivors. We thank them for their service and commitment to take care of this important memorial. 6