Volunteers needed to provide companion care for people with dementia

Helping Western New Yorkers afflicted by Alzheimer's disease can be as easy as volunteering two hours a month with a friend or family member.

The Alzheimer's Association, WNY Chapter is seeking volunteers from Amherst and Getzville who may be interested in becoming a volunteer for the Association's Companion Care Program to help others in their community.

The Companion Care Program allows persons with dementia to engage in social interaction with volunteers while the caregiver will be free to run errands, go to lunch, take a nap or whatever he/she would like.

The program is run in a variety of places - in-home, at a location within a community (mall or grocery store) and at the chapter's office. Volunteers are set up in teams of two, which can be comprised of friends, co-workers, spouses or relatives, or the chapter can pair two people interested in volunteering.

In-home volunteers would go in pairs into a client's home for a minimum of two hours a month or as much as two hours per week. The chapter can help to arrange clients around the volunteer's schedules, and the Companion Care volunteer will receive free training by the Alzheimer's Association.

Previous knowledge or experiences with a person with dementia is desired. Town residents can call the Alzheimer's Association at 626-0600/(800) 272-3900 or e-mail Julie Schoenecker at Julie.Schoenecker@alz.org for information or to sign up.