Friendly Visiting

Our Friendly Visiting program pairs kindhearted individuals with homebound elderly neighbors in need of companionship. Volunteers are carefully screened and trained before being matched to an elderly person with whom they share a common interest or bond. Through regular visits in the meal recipients’ own homes, these unique relationships quickly grow into lasting friendships.

The time commitment for this program is one hour per week for at least six months. A visiting schedule can be arranged between the volunteer and their match.

Heava Challenger and her 15-year-old daughter Tiffany participate in Friendly Visiting. Each Saturday, they visit with Ms. Ross, an 84-year-old meal recipient living in the Bronx who suffers from osteoarthritis and relies on a wheelchair to get around her small apartment.

“We’ve really come to love her,” Heava explains. “I’ll call her during the week if she was worrying about something or she had a doctor’s appointment. We talk about current events, and usually watch some TV. Sometimes we end up being with her for hours – the entire afternoon flies by!”

Read more stories about Friendly Visiting on our blog.