An update from Marty Lamb - PDF document

1 An update from Marty Lamb... Now that th
An update from Marty Lamb... Now that the sun has come out and we dare to dream of possibilities in the spring about to emerge, I come to greet you with an update from the neigh - borly services initiative of Cameron Commons as you explore how you might wish to be in - volved. For over a year now I have been acting as “coordinator” for our neighborly services. We now have 31 volunteer neighbors who have ex - pressed interest in being called by coordinator when requested from a Cameron Park resident in need, to offer short term assistance, such as the following: •Taking walks with neighbor •Relief in staying with ill family member •Accompanying neighbor as “medical buddy” to medical ap - pointments to hear what is said •Riding with senior neighbors to ap - pointments and events •Offering simple technical support with items such as home computers or cell phones or Zoom •Grocery shopping, running errands for neighbor, meal preparation •Taking out trash •Help with de-cluttering and re-cycling •Brief absence services: watering plants, pet care, mail pick-up •Seasonal shifting of clothing or mov - ing deck furniture Naturally when we are in such need, we look rst to request assistance from family, friends, or neighbors directly. A request to Cameron Commons’ coordinator for specif - ic short term assistance from a specied list of options for neighborly support in the cate - gories above may be a back-up plan to consid - er. The director of the - lage Network (of which Cameron Comons is a member) recommends villages like ours have a coordinator(s) to con - nect to keep some con - dentiality in the pro - cess, to avoid volunteer burn-out, and to have some degree of orga - nization. Naturally, in certain situations you will need to be hiring professional/licensed staff for assistance be - yond what neighbors will provide. Here are examples of some of the short term assistance deliv - ered in 2020 through the coordinator: •A neighbor who lives alone when discharged from the hospital requested light housekeeping short-term assistance. The neighbor was connected with another - tance. •A neighbor requested assistance in changing a difcult to reach lightbulb and was connected to a neighbor who complet - ed this task. •A small neighbor living alone request - ed assistance lifting a heavy carpet to the   \r Cameron Commons News Winter-Spring / March 2021 \r\f\n\t\b See Helping neighbors, Page 2 \f\n   \n\t  \b\r  This year, Aiyana E. Torres, a rst-year Master of Social Work student at NC State University will be completing her eld-work placement here at Cameron Commons un - der the supervision of Marty Lamb, LCSW. Aiyana will be available to assist with Cameron Common Projects Wednesdays through Fridays until May on Zoom. She is also available to virtually assist you with minor technical support with things such as: •Cellphones •Desktop and laptop computers •Apple products •Cameras and televisions (on a case-by- case basis) •And social media setup for business or personal use Additionally, Aiyana is available to learn more about you and your life story through interviewing techniques. This could be done for your own personal use or to be shared on the Cameron Commons website as we develop a section on interesting life stories of neighbors. If you would like to get in touch with Aiyana Torres, please contact Marty Lamb on week days. Earlier this year, all Cameron Park residents received a Short Term Assi - satance Request form. It was included in a door-hanger package along with a Cameron Commons brochure and a yer about our 2021 Forum Series. You can click here to ll out the form online. For more helpful information, click here . 2 \b&

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\r  \b \r On Saturday, November 14th we loaded up more vehicles in front of Bonnie Elam’s home at 1611 Park Drive. In addition to all the food and supplies, we collected over $3,000 in checks for various charities. Thanks to all the generous neighbors! To celebrate the rst day of spring, we’re hosting another food drive on Satur - day, March 20th, from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM. We’ll be at 1611 Park Drive. As before, we’re accepting both donated items and  
 We’ve held two Forums so far this year, and have two more to go. Click on the rst two Forum titles below to watch the recorded Zoom meeting. Click on the upcoming meeting dates for more information. ­€
\n‚ƒ\r„\r \b\n€…ƒ\r Tuesday, March 23 †„†‡„ˆ†† \t€‰„\r Thursday, April 15 „ƒˆ  \b
  Š  ‚\r „ From page 1 street for disposal and was connected with a neighbor approximately a block away who promptly helped lift the item to the street. •An older neighbor with a disability requested food delivery from a particular grocery store nearby during the Covid ep - idemic and was connected to a volunteer who obtained the groceries and left them on the porch. •Some neighbors took opportunity to tell their stories and/or receive tech support from our social work student. •Tech support in using Zoom was of - fered to several neighbors during Covid to prevent social isolation. •In addition, information and referral was offered on more than 40 separate occa - sions during the year to neighbors. There is also now a group of neighbors who have volunteered to be “checkers” on their blocks at times of storm damage or other such neighborhood emergencies, just to see that we are each doing O.K. Some persons in the neighborhood have also agreed to be Cameron Commons “ambassa - dors”, meaning they can be neighbors who know something about our initiative and how and when people might wish to con - nect. A Zoom meeting was offered to the Checkers and Ambassadors on January 7, 2021 to orient and address questions, and a copy of the updated Powerpoint created for the meeting, with list of street assignments was emailed to them afterwards. As a next step in our adventure, Lou Paules, retired after many years as a volun - teer and volunteer coordinator with the Center for Volunteer Caregiving, will be meeting with neighbor volunteers on Zoom at 5 PM on Tuesday, March 16th at 5 PM to discuss issues we should consider when volunteering in persons’ homes. All of us involved with Cameron Com - mons are volunteers, and intend to be such in the future. Many hands make light work. Do you have a need or know of a neighbor in need of any of the short term assistance noted above? Interested in attending the Zoom session with Lou Paules, MSW on March 16th? Curious? Questions? Feel free to call me at 919-346-4992 between 10 AM and 4 PM on a week day for quiet conversa - tion and understanding. Marty Lamb, neighbor in Cameron Park over 40 years checks to six worth - while organizations

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. For more information, you can call Bonnie Elam at 919-786-4478. Many children are placed in difcult cir - cumstances. They often live in motels, trailers, and crowded apart - ments without reliable internet access or trans - portation. A collation of effective organiza - tions deliver food to these children or collect funds for families to buy food. You can help. Items that are needed: •Canned Low Salt Meats, Vegetables, Fruits, Beans, Soups & Stews •Cleaning Supplies: Ajax, Spic and Span, Soaps, Brushes, 70% Alcohol •Bath & Laundry Soap, Deodorant, Hand Sanitizers, Shampoo, Toilet Paper, Tooth Brushes and Paste, Personal Female Supplies See Food Drive, Page 3 For most of us during this corona - virus epidemic, our daily lives and rou - tines have changed dramatically. We miss some of things we used to do, like exer - cise classes with other people. Also join - ing others for bookclubs, art classes and discussion groups. Through the Vitality Society you can do all these things from the safety and comfort of your own home. For a quick introduction and video about the Vitality Society click here . Picture attending yoga, Latin dance, barefoot therapy, hula hooping, physical therapy and other classes/groups with - out having to leave your home. You can pay for individual classes one at a time, or for unlimited classes on a monthly basis. Right now, you can sign up for a free month and see if you like the variety of classes and various groups. If you like what the Vitality Society has to offer, and want to sign up for a month, you’ll get a special rate as a Cameron Park neighbor and member of Cameron Com - mons. Instead of the regular monthly fee of $29.99, you can save $10.00 and pay only $19.99 a month for unlimited classes (over 70 are offered each month). You can join with the Cameron Commons discounted rate by clicking here . You can cancel at any time during your one-month trial and nev - er be charged. Thereafter, you can easily cancel at any time for any reason in just a few clicks. ‹\n €\n\n  3 \f   Cameron Commons is a non- prot 501(c)(3) organization, which makes your donation tax deductible. All dona - tions are used to cover operating expenses. Our yearly budget averages $1,700. Our expenses include printing costs, website, mailbox rental, annual Zoom fee, neigh - borhood activities, and annul dues to the Village to Village network. Please make checks out to Cameron Commons, and send to our treasurer Judy Matthews at Cameron Commons, 514 Daniels Street #131, Raleigh NC 27605. •Infants: Powered Milk, Infant Cereal and Jars of Baby Food, Diapers Note: For food safety regulations, donate sealed items with listed ingredients. Please no glass jars, and baby food in plastic jars. Established, Effective Organizations with Opportunities to Donate and Volunteer: You may write checks and deliver them to the food drive, or donate directly to the group. Thank you for your generosity. Our children need our help. Alliance Medical Ministry is supported by many in our community. Alliance provides medical care and has a community garden where you can weed and plant vegetables. Interfaith Food Shuttle grows food, pre - pares meals, purchases needed food and deliv - ers it to sites in central NC. The Food Shuttle has numerous opportunities for individuals and groups to volunteer on its farm or donate. The Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina provides food and supplies to churches, schools and organizations in 38 counties. You can sponsor a food drive, sort donations in their warehouse, or garden. Make checks payable to “Food Bank of Cen - tral and Eastern NC” No Kid Hungry delivers food to drop off sites where children live or attend school across NC. Their web site has a list and a map of deliv - ery sites. Make checks payable to: “UNC, HPDP, No Kid Hungry NC # 388301” Urban Ministry has a long history of support from people in Cameron Park to provide medical services and food to people in our community. Wiley Elementary School established the Cecelia Rollins Foundation to collect donations for grocery gift cards that teachers give to parents to purchase needed items for their families.
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