Secret Santas for Our Seniors
Faith in Action of the Greater Kanawha Valley (FIAGKV) is a nonprofit dedicated to helping seniors in Kanawha and Putnam counties in West Virginia sustain their independence and remain in their
own
homes as long as possible. We do this by providing FREE services like transportation to medical appointments or the grocery store, running errands, making telephone reassurance calls or friendly visits, and more. We are a 100% volunteer driven organization,
striving to make a difference neighbor to neighbor.
West Virginia is one of the oldest states in the union, demographically. As you might imagine, FIAGKV receives an enormous number of applications each week and we serve one of the most vulnerable populations in our communities.
One result of our daily outreach and work is gaining intimate knowledge about our care receivers, both in terms of their loneliness due to social isolation and in terms of the striking financial challenges they face every day.
We have been able to identify 43 elderly care receivers currently participating in the FIAGKV program for whom the holidays are nothing special. They have no close family or friends in the area. They spend inordinate amounts of time home alone with little
opportunity for outside engagement or community interaction. They are faced with daunting life choices in the face of too few dollars to pay for too many expenses.
We intend to plant the seeds for a new annual tradition with this Secret Santas for Our Seniors project; one we can nurture and grow for years to come.
Small Gifts, Big Impact.
Our people have many needs and few wants. Our goal with this program is to help achieve a balance, helping to fulfill some of their needs with the warmth and thoughtfulness of a personal gift, too. While some of our senior's personal gifts will be purchased
by volunteers w
ho have stepped up to "adopt" a care receiver for this project, many will
go unclaimed. If we are able to achieve our "ultimate goal," we will ensure that every one of the 43 participants will not only be gifted with some basic holiday cheer, but will also receive a gift especially selected for them.
* Delores, aged 87, loves to read and a real bright spot in her life had been receiving her monthly issue of 'Guidepost' magazine. Her eyesight is fading, so she let the subscription lapse. With your help, we can get her a subscription to
the Large Print edition, plus a hand-held magniftying glass that will go a long way toward helping her better read labels, her mail, and more.
* Barbara, who is legally blind, lived in a public housing facility when her apartment was broken into and she lost what few items she owned, including most of her clothing. She is a very petite woman living on a fixed income, trying to
replace her wardrobe season by season. With winter coming, she would beneft greatly from some warm pajamas and a nice sweater.
* Minnie always has a smile on her face and is fond of saying, "Any day above ground is a good one." But Minnie lives alone up a difficult holler in the Valley and has no way of getting out on the best of days, much less when the weather
is bad and the roads are treacherous. With your help, we can make sure her pantry is stocked with non-perishable food items to help her through the toughest days of winter, and we might also be able to throw in a pretty set of dish towels to help brighten
her space.
Will you help us reach our goal?
We know the value of this platform and the power it has to impact the world with so much good. In the scheme of things, our project seems small and, perhaps to some, insignificant. But in reality, this is only the beginning.
In less than two years, Faith in Action of the Greater Kanawha Valley has grown from a mere seed of an idea into a full-fledged volunteer program providing valuable services to 300+ seniors in our communities. This number continues to grown and FIAGKV will
continue to grow right along with it, as long as the need exists and as long as our services can help our elderly age in place, in their own homes, for as long as they want or need.
The same focused dedication that has helped FIAGKV blossom as a program is behind the initiative planting the seeds for a holiday project centered entirely on the senior citizens of our communities, a population that is often overlooked or forgotten, particularly
during the Christmas season.
Please help us change that reality and bring joy to their lives this holiday by:
*** Donating money! For as litte as $55 per senior, we can hit this project out of the park. If 250 people support the Secret Santas for Our Seniors project with a $10 donation - we are there.
*** Share our project! Use the power of social media to spread the word to friends and family about this wonderful project you support and ask them to help, too!
Learn more:
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