SILVAR  :  Newsroom  : Real Estate Articles

Real Estate Articles

Realtors Give Back to Seniors, Help Them with Household Tasks


Image about Realtors Give Back to Seniors, Help Them with Household Tasks

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

During the week of May 3-7, 275 volunteers from the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors helped 152 seniors in the association's five districts (Menlo Park/Atherton, Palo Alto, Los Altos/Mountain View, Cupertino/Sunnyvale and Los Gatos/Saratoga) with household tasks they can no longer do on their own. Area residents may have noticed the sign the volunteers placed outside the seniors' homes and the t-shirts they donned, displaying the blue and yellow logo that identified them as volunteers of the Realtor Service Volunteer Program (RSVP).

Every year in May, which is designated as Senior Citizen Month, Realtors and affiliates (professionals who provide industry-related services) of the local trade association and other neighboring Realtor associations take time from their busy work schedules to help the seniors by washing windows, installing smoke detector batteries, flipping mattresses, light vacuuming, dusting, replacing light bulbs, changing furnace filters and trimming bushes.

RSVP was started by members of the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors in 2001, and then adopted as an official association community outreach project in 2002. The program has expanded to include members of the San Mateo County Association of Realtors, Fresno Association of Realtors, Santa Clara County Association of Realtors and the Santa Cruz Association of Realtors.

"For homeowners or renters who are advanced in years or physically challenged, performing seemingly simple household tasks, which many of us take for granted, can be a major chore. Realtors and affiliates from our association are here to help them and not to promote their business." said Eileen Giorgi, chair of the local Realtor association's RSVP program.

The seniors are grateful to receive the free service. A 75-year-old Saratoga resident thanked Giorgi, Dave Tonna and Jorja Smith for washing the outside windows of her home, trimming shrubs and removing a ruffled bedspread from underneath her mattress. "I get dizzy spells now and then, and my knees don't work like they used to. When you get to be my age, your body doesn't work like it used to," she chuckled.

Many seniors have to depend on neighbors for help them with some of these tasks because their children have moved away. "They don't like having to ask for help from their neighbors all the time," Giorgi explained.

A Sunnyvale senior who is 84 years old, also thanked the Realtors for washing her windows, moving a stove and refrigerator so she could clean behind and underneath the appliances and replacing a couple of smoke detector batteries.

"I really appreciate the help," she said. "I still do quite a bit of the work myself. I even used to climb the step ladder, but my son gets worried about that, so I don't do it anymore."

Hilda Balakhane finds volunteering for RSVP gratifying. "Before I became a Realtor I was a social worker. I have always enjoyed helping others," said Balakhane. "This way, even as a Realtor I can get the experience of social work."

An 82-year-old Cupertino resident, who suffers from osteoporosis and a compressed vertebrae, was elated when RSVP volunteers did some light vacuuming in her home. "I just think it's wonderful. I couldn't have asked for more," she exclaimed.

 "RSVP is about helping our seniors who have done so much for our communities," said Giorgi. "We're all glad to do it; it's our turn to give back to them and to our communities."

Photo Gallery


 

The Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® (SILVAR) is a professional trade organization representing over 4,000 REALTORS® and Affiliate members engaged in the real estate business on the Peninsula and in the South Bay. SILVAR promotes the highest ethical standards of real estate practice, serves as an advocate for homeownership and homeowners, and represents the interests of property owners in Silicon Valley.

The term "REALTOR®" is a registered collective membership mark which identifies a real estate professional who is a member of the National Association of REALTORS® and who subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics.

Variations of this article have appeared in local area newspapers.

For further information, please contact Rose Meily at SILVAR Public Affairs, email , or phone (408) 200-0109.

» Back to Real Estate Articles

Site Navigation