The Holiday season is fast approaching and most people are rushing around planning for family and friend gatherings, presents to buy, and trying to squeeze in all the last-minute details in an attempt to have the best season ever. We want everything to be perfect; we want our gifts to be special and create long lasting memories.
It’s in our haste, however, that sometimes we forget the real purpose of the season; our connection with those around us that need comfort. These people don’t usually need the gifts that we buy, but they do need the human bond that we can create. They may be people that we are related to, or they may be people that we hardly know. They don’t need a plant or pair of socks; and they certainly don’t need a singing fish or a joke book. What they need is human or animal connection, they need our time and our presence. Whoever they are, care and compassion are the best gifts that we can provide them with.
At Lizzy’s Fund, we make a great effort, not just during the Holidays but all year long, to reach the people that need our presence the most. Our Seniors for Seniors program uses our senior certified therapy dogs to visit the older residents of local nursing home communities. The gift we bring is us, not useless items that will soon be forgotten or discarded. The gift that we bring them is community, compassion, conversation, and concern. The dogs provide the same gift and patiently sit with the resident for a pat. It is a proven fact that a therapy dog provides calming solace, even to a troubled soul.
The residents may not remember our names, but they certainly remember the dogs and anxiously look forward to our visits. We have been named by the facilities as the “Joy Squad.” Our visits are particularly important at the holiday season, when many of the residents are alone either because their families are not close by or because the families are busy planning their best season ever.
The greatest gift that we can provide to these older adults is our time. Time to listen to them even when they are having difficulty expressing themselves, time to hold a hand, or time to just sit with a sad or lonely person.
Our human volunteers are amazing and range in age from senior citizens themselves or to the youngest of our troop at the age of 12. It’s particularly heartwarming when some of our young volunteers give some of their time to participate in the Seniors for Seniors program and visit with a resident with a therapy dog at the facility.
How special it is to see a young person willing to give up an afternoon to make a difference in an elderly person’s day. We are grateful and thankful for each and every one of our volunteers that generously give their time to make a difference and provide the perfect gift.
