Event Coverage
170 Volunteers Assist 79 Senior Households during RSVP Week
SILVAR's REALTOR® Service Volunteer Program (RSVP) got off to a good start this week, with good weather for the 170 volunteers from SILVAR assisting 79 senior households residing within the Association's five districts. Participating in the program this year were a number of first-time volunteers and new agents eager to join long-time volunteers in giving back to their communities. The seniors, who look forward to the program each year, welcomed the RSVP volunteers into their homes with smiles, appreciative of the help they receive one day in May.
During RSVP week, volunteers from SILVAR visit the homes of seniors who are physically and financially challenged and provide free assistance with household tasks, like replacing light bulbs, changing furnace filters, washing windows, turning over mattresses, changing smoke detector batteries and other chores that they cannot, or have a difficult time doing on their own.
"RSVP Week has gotten to be a tradition of giving back to the community. We set aside one day a year as a group to do this together and the seniors are very appreciative of what we do," said longtime RSVP volunteer David Kim, who was among the 49 volunteers assisting 28 senior households residing in the Los Altos/Mountain View District.
"All REALTORS® should devote one day to make a difference. It's not that difficult. Everyone can make the time one day a year," said Nick French, another long-time RSVP volunteer.
As Robert Reid, Eric Trailer, Drew Duran and Jeff Beltramo trimmed bushes and whacked weeds for a Palo Alto senior homeowner, Reid noted, "The community supports us with our business. We certainly can give back in return."
"We get a great sense of satisfaction assisting our senior community," added Trailer.
"My parents are elderly. I totally get their perspective now that I wouldn't have had 20 years ago," said Frank Quinn, a Los Gatos RSVP volunteer.
Among those volunteering for the first time this year were Sophia Xu, Travor Loveless, Steve Bulifant, and Jordan Etem. As new agents, they said they, too, wanted to give back to their communities.
The seniors couldn't thank the volunteers enough. A 73-year-old Los Altos resident said it was her second time requesting the REALTORS®' assistance. "I am recovering from a very bad cancer. It ages you so much that I feel like I am 83. They have been such a big help," she said.
In Los Gatos, a 93-year-old widow said while she has a caregiver, she really needed the help. "I can get the vacuuming done, but it takes money to have people help me with my windows and flipping my mattress. They have been very helpful to me," she said.
A 79-year-old Menlo Park senior said she and her 87-year-old husband have no children, so she was glad the volunteers changed their furnace filter, replaced smoke detector batteries and light bulbs.
Another senior homeowner who is 80 years old, said she, too, was so appreciative of the help she received from the program. Her 84-year-old husband was recovering from a fall and a stroke. "I just can't do it all alone," she said, as the volunteers moved her husband's hospital bed mattress, made the beds and washed their windows.
An 88-year-old Sunnyvale homeowner called the RSVP volunteers who came to wash her windows "angels." She got teary-eyed when the volunteers got ready to leave.
"I just hate to see you leave!" she exclaimed.
Thank you to all the volunteers who made seniors in their communities very happy this week, and to the RSVP District chairs, who coordinated the program this year. They include Eileen Giorgi, SILVAR RSVP chair; Suzanne O'Brien, Los Altos/Mountain View District; Sue Bose, Cupertino/Sunnyvale District; Mary Kay Groth, Los Gatos/Saratoga District; Jeff Beltramo, Palo Alto District; and Ryan Sloane and David Barca, Menlo Park/Atherton District. Thank you, too, to MLSListings Inc., which provides the RSVP t-shirts for the volunteers every year.
VIEW PHOTOS
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.
For further information, please email or call the SILVAR office at (408) 200-0100.