There are always good feelings when the REALTOR® Service Volunteer Program (RSVP) takes place in May. The week got off to a good start with good weather for the 170 volunteers from the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® (SILVAR) who assisted 79 senior households residing within the association's five districts, located as far north as Menlo Park and down to Los Gatos and Saratoga. This year 48 REALTOR® volunteers from the Santa Cruz County Association of REALTORS® also helped 55 senior households in their community.
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. The volunteers say they get a great sense of satisfaction helping the elderly who have done much for the community.
During RSVP week, volunteers from the local trade association 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 seniors 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 SILVAR RSVP volunteer David Kim.
As Realtors 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."
"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.
Participating in the program this year were a number of first-time volunteers, eager to join long-time volunteers in giving back to their communities. Among them was Sophia Xu, who had washed windows for five senior homes that day.
"I wanted to help and make a difference. It's not that difficult," said Xu.
The seniors couldn't thank the volunteers enough. "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," said a 73-year-old Los Altos resident.
In Los Gatos, a 93-year-old widow said, "I can get the vacuuming done, no one can help me with my windows and flipping my mattress. They have been very helpful to me."
Another senior homeowner who is 80 years old, said she, too, was so appreciative of the help. Her 84-year-old husband was recovering from a fall and a stroke.
"I just can't do it all alone," she remarked, as the volunteers moved her husband's hospital bed mattress, made the beds and washed their windows.
An 88-year-old homeowner echoed what many seniors have mentioned. "They are angels," she said. She got teary-eyed when the volunteers got ready to leave.
"I just hate to see you leave!" she exclaimed.
RSVP was started by members of SILVAR in 2001 and adopted as an official association community outreach project the following year. "Each year our volunteers realize the importance of our being there for our seniors," said SILVAR RSVP chair Eileen Giorgi. "We really receive more than we give."
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 email or call the SILVAR office at (408) 200-0100.