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By Robby McKittrick
Hometown Weekly Reporter
On Wednesday, October 31, the Walpole Council on Aging held a volunteer fair for members of the community.
The Senior Center hosted the fair because the facility is moving to a new home at the beginning of 2019, where there will be additional volunteer opportunities.
“We are getting ready to open our new location on South Street, and in anticipation of that, we have noticed a greater number of people interested in volunteering with us,” explained Council on Aging Director Kerri McManama. “Seeing that interest, and knowing that we are moving to this new space that will offer a lot more opportunities for the seniors to get involved and do more things, we thought ‘let’s have a fair, let’s get all of these interested people together, and … let them choose how they want to get involved.'”
There were a variety of volunteer tasks to sign up for at the event, such as helping out with information desk support, “Meals on Wheels,” the food pantry, and Senior Moments, which is the senior chorus.
A couple of other organizations showed up to the fair as well, such as the Senior Corps Volunteer Program and another group that knits hats for veterans.
Walpole residents sign up for new volunteer services during the Council on Aging volunteer fair.
“I am interested [in volunteering in other ways],” said Senior Center visitor Mariah Billingham, who already volunteers as a receptionist on Monday mornings.
“I am looking [for other opportunities],” added another frequent guest, Podgie Weissent, who currently volunteers at the Food Pantry.
The Senior Center is moving to 60 South Street at the beginning of the New Year, and it is hoping to receive more volunteers in the future.
“I hope we get a lot of new volunteers, but I also see some people who currently volunteer who are looking for other ways to get involved, which is just as important,” said McManama. “We do have some new people who have come in and said that they want to come [and volunteer] next week, and I have never seen them here before, so that’s nice to see.”
For those who are interested in volunteering, but could not make the event, McManama encourages them reach out to the Senior Center.
“If they missed the fair today, there are a lot of other ways to get involved,” she said. “They should stop in and talk to anyone on staff or any of our volunteers to see how they can make a real difference at the Senior Center.”
